Why did the ‘Welcome to Key West’ sign disappear in storm? From a ‘lapse in judgment’

Welcome home, welcome sign.

The “Welcome to Key West” sign that disappeared after Hurricane Irma struck Sept. 10 returned home this week in classic Keys style.

It was returned by an unidentified young couple in Fort Myers who brought it to the Key West Express ferry terminal there. Ferry employees carried it back and placed it into the hands of Key West police.

Rotary Club members had provided the $8,000 sign. They sounded the theft alarm a week ago, saying the sign had been knocked down during the hurricane but its disappearance was deliberate by someone.

Thursday, the sign was brought into the noon Rotary Club meeting to cheers. All is forgiven, members said.

“The person was contacted and was very remorseful,” said Nadene Grossman Orr, a Rotary member who announced on Facebook that the sign was indeed missing. “A young couple in their 20s who had a lapse in judgment.”

Police officers delivered the sign to the DoubleTree Grand Key Resort on South Roosevelt Boulevard, where Rotary meets, she said. “The sign got a standing ovation,” Grossman Orr said.