Battered By Irma, Florida Fishermen Pin Their Hopes On Stone Crab Season
Most years, spiny lobsters are the most lucrative commercial catch in Florida. Hurricane Irma cut this season short. Some fishermen are hoping a strong stone crab season will keep the industry afloat.
On Florida's Marathon Key, lobster boats pull up to the docks in the afternoon, same as they would on any September day.
But this year, instead of hauling in thousands of valuable spiny lobsters, most are unloading the few traps they can find, and maybe a quarter of the usual catch.
Boat captain Carlos Moreira is tired after a long day at sea searching for lost traps.
"Well you gotta start somewhere, so you just look for one," says Moreira.
"Yesterday, from where I had my traps to where I found them, they were 7 miles
