Manatee County Urges Citizens to Shelter in Place
Manatee County Urges Citizens to Shelter in Place
MANATEE COUNTY, FL (Sept. 26, 2024) – Hurricane Helene is churning through the Gulf of Mexico past the Manatee County coastline, but its presence is still being felt.
As conditions deteriorate through the evening, residents and visitors should have evacuated to higher ground by now. At this point it is unsafe to travel, so officials are asking citizens to shelter in place.
Some streets and roadways in the coastal areas of the county have been inundated with floodwaters, and a further storm surge is anticipated along with more wind and rain through the evening hours. Flood warnings remain in effect for a few nearby rivers. The Alafia in Hillsborough County is forecast to go into record flood stage at 8’ tonight, while the Myakka River at Myakka Head is forecast to reach a minor flood stage at 12.1’ by mid-day Friday.
Helene is rapidly intensifying as it races northwards across the Gulf of Mexico. The Category 3 storm is expected to reach Category 4 strength before landfall. Because of this, Manatee County offices and facilities which were closed today due to the storm will remain closed on Friday, Sept. 27, 2024. Manatee County Schools will also be closed Friday. Courts in the 12th Judicial Circuit for Sarasota and Manatee Counties will be closed Friday.
Contract waste haulers will resume their operations tomorrow. Residents whose typical trash collection occurs on Thursday will have pick ups tomorrow. Regularly scheduled Friday pick-ups will happen Saturday. Some areas may not be accessible for haulers due to impacts from Helene. The Lena Rd. Landfill will be open Friday.
Manatee County Utilities staff continues to monitor the storm surge situation on the barrier islands to safely restore the potable water service as soon as possible. The lake level at the Manatee Dam was at 36.57’ at 4:00 p.m. with inflow calculated at is 363.25 cubic feet per second (CFS) and 0 CFS outflow. Crews are also monitoring lift station operations throughout the county.
Citizens are urged to remain vigilant as conditions continue to deteriorate through the evening:
Remember to call 911 for emergencies only.
Sunshine Skyway bridge is closed. For road closure updates, check this link.
If safe, shelter at home until the storms pass -- unless travel is necessary.
Don’t drive through water of unknown depth (if you can’t see the road markings).
Exercise caution around any downed utility lines (they could still be energized).
When traffic signals aren’t working, treat intersection as a four-way stop.
Report any malfunctions or outages to 3-1-1 (to help first responders help you).
Residents and visitors should continue to monitor local news and weather broadcasts as well as the County's social media accounts for updates. Official storm information from Manatee County at is always updated at mymanatee.org/storm.