Mock Florida Keys nation annexes bridge reached by Cubans

The mock Conch Republic on Friday "annexed" an abandoned bridge in the &to=http://english.pravda.ru/accidents/21/97/385/16360_Florida.html' target=_blank>Florida Keys that the federal government ruled was not U.S. territory when 15 Cubans landed there last week.

Members of the republic, established in 1982 by disgruntled Florida Keys residents as a toungue-in-cheek protest over U.S. Border Patrol checkpoints, planted flags along the section of the bridge where the Cubans landed and said they hoped to use it for affordable housing.

Self-appointed Republic of Conch Secretary General Peter Anderson said he planned to offer 50-foot (15-meter) sections of the structure to those who want to build eco-friendly "bridge-shacks."

"Since the federal government decided in its infinite wisdom that the old Seven Mile Bridge is not territory of the United States, the Conch Republic is very interested," Anderson said.