Flagler County stands down state of emergency

Residents, local and state EOCs were preparing for possible hurricane

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Flagler County has ordered all operations to return to normal after ordering a state of emergency on Friday. According to Flagler County Safety Manager Keven Guthrie, all staff and operations are to be back to normal operations as of Saturday morning.

As of about 9 a.m. Saturday, Erika dissipated and was no longer considered a tropical storm, though it could regenerate over the Gulf of Mexico. 

Flagler County became the first county in Northeast Florida to declare a state of emergency as Tropical Storm Erika continued its track toward the state.

Gov. Rick Scott issued a statewide executive order Friday, and Flagler County followed suit shortly after.

The National Hurricane Center had predicted that Tropical Storm Erika would travel north up the Florida peninsula from Aug. 30 through Sept. 2.

"We have to plan for the worst and hope for the best," Flagler County Administrator Craig Coffey said. "We have to be ready to assist our residents in any way we can."

The state activated its Division of Emergency Management to execute the Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan. Flagler County has activated its Emergency Operations Center at level 2 for command and general staff.

"There is a lot of information about this storm, but please don't become complacent," Guthrie said. "The ground is already saturated, so we may very well have some localized flooding."

To help residents prepare for possible flooding, sand and sandbags were made available throughout Flagler County, but the sand bag distribution was canceled after Erika dissipated.

Other county emergency operations centers in Northeast Florida remained at preparation level 3 Friday afternoon, the lowest level.

DOCUMENT: St. Johns County offers storm prep tips

In Duval County, the director of emergency preparedness said the county was on a standby approach.

"It does seem to change with every forecast period, but certainly the likelihood of some tropical storm force winds and some rain and some flooding associated with that rain is a possibility here," Steve Woodard said.

JEA workers were out Friday replacing power poles and lines that could cause problems during a storm.

"With the new wiring in the new poles and stuff we're getting rid of a lot of the older equipment," JEA foreman Chris Richardson said. "Most of this wire has been here for 30 or 40 years. (We're) getting rid of most of the stuff that's had multiple uses on it. This was planned well before the storm ever happened."

Richardson said the new wires were being put in all over town and JEA would have crews on standby this weekend and through the next week.

Public Works personnel were also be out clearing drains, ditches and other stormwater areas to help alleviate any potential flooding, Woodard said.

Al Ferraro has been working to get areas in his district cleaned up, especially along East Port Road.

"I've been working on it for about the past two weeks, trying to get the city to come out here and clean it up," Ferraro said. "The mayor's office and the city have been working well with us and getting things taken care of. There's a lot of drains and there's a lot of things that have not been taken care of in the past four to eight years. We're trying to catch up."

Flooding is also the main concern in Clay County, according to Clay County Emergency Management Deputy Director John Ward. 

He said the county's Emergency Management headquarters would be open for fire rescue, law enforcement, health department, public works, Red Cross and Salvation Army personnel to help coordinate response efforts.

"All of our partner agencies are in here, so we can communicate and let them know each of our needs," Ward said. "Each of the agencies will be able to respond in every community."

Ward said Clay County's health department workers had already begun calling special needs individuals, including those on oxygen generators or those who need power for livesaving devices, to see if they will need help getting to the special needs evacuation center at Thrasher Horn Center at St. Johns River State College.

Other officials along the First Coast were also watching Erika, knowing that if the storm continues on its projected path, it could be on the doorstep of Northeast Florida by Wednesday.

"At this point, we go through all of our systems on-site, make sure everything is fueled, our generators are ready to go … we have all our supplies in place, all of our computers are up and running and ready to go in case we would have to activate the EOC," said Linda Stoughton, director of emergency management for St. Johns County.

Officials had conference calls with the state and the National Hurricane Center. City and county leaders worked with law enforcement, fire rescue, the health department and the school board in case they needed to open shelters.

Not only wre the agencies preparing themselves, they were encouraging families to do the same.

"Whether we get lucky and this does not impact us or whether it does, our citizens need to take action and go ahead and have the family disaster kits prepared, in case they have to take action," Ward said. "This is a reminder for us. It has been some time since we've had impacts from storms in Northeast Florida."

ONLINE: Preparation tips, flood maps, shelter info and more

In Duval County, Bill Spann, director of public affairs for Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry, said there were things local families could be doing to make sure they stay safe and prepared.

"The first message is don't panic, prepare and remember the rules of three: You need to have supplies for three days. You need to have prescriptions for three days. You need to think about where you're going to put your pets. Where you're going to put any elderly relatives that you have or anyone who has special medical care," Spann said. "You really need to think about how you take care of yourself for 72 hours, because the plan is that the city or the state or first responders will be able to hopefully clear and get to you within 72 hours, but you need to be able to take care of yourself for 72 hours."

Curry brought together city leaders Thursday for an emergency operations briefing as they work on an evolving plan in case Tropical Storm Erika impacts the area.

"If Erika hits Jacksonville, Jacksonville will be ready," Spann said.

City officials said residents could head to Jaxready.com or coj.net for more important information and updates. 

Flagler County was also stepping up to make sure its residents were taken care of by getting their special needs evacuation shelters ready and instituting their CodeRED weather warning system.

For those with special needs, Flagler County officials said it was imperative to get registered so they could accommodate everyone who may need help.

"There is a lot of uncertainty about Tropical Storm Erika but whether we suffer any effects of this storm or not, now would be a good time to sign up for these services," Guthrie said. "We especially want to make sure we have everyone with special needs registered." 

Residents can register for both CodeRED and the special needs evacuation center online at flagleremergency.com.    

Many of the local emergency management agencies have smartphone alerts available for residents. To sign up for up-to-the-minute information as the storm approaches, visit your county's emergency management website. 


About the Authors:

Jim Piggott is the reporter to count on when it comes to city government and how it will affect the community.