Sigh of Relief: Lido Shores Weathers Hurricane Irma

Downed tree branches litter Westway Drive Monday morning (Sept 10th) in aftermath of Hurricane Irma

It isn't pretty... but our island neighborhood survived Hurricane Irma relatively unscathed.  High Category 1 force winds downed numerous tree limbs and scattered palm fronds around many yards.  A stop sign was blown over, as was a mailbox or two.  But the predicted major storm surge on the backside of the Irma never materialized.  And by Monday morning... Lido Shores' streets were mostly clear and more importantly, dry.

Jon and Donna Boscia were among a handful of Lido Shorians who rolled the dice and decided to ride out the massive storm.  They had plans to stay at the new Westin Hotel..but on Saturday Zone A was ordered to evacuate and their reservations were cancelled.  Jon picks up their heart racing story from there:

"We had offers to stay with friends a bit further inland as well as going to a shelter.  Our home and windows are built to Miami-Dade standards so the only thing we worried about was storm surge.  Every prediction for high end surge levels was below our elevation so we decided the best option for us was to stay put.

We then learned about folks who had no place to go other than a shelter so we invited them to stay with us.  Some we knew and some we didn't.  They had dogs and cats but we didn't care.

Have to say that we all breathed a sigh of relief when Irma made the turn for Marco Island and Naples.  Notwithstanding the movement, it was a very nervous night.  Things got really hairy beginning around 9 o'clock, and when the eye arrived a few hours later the wind and rain were extremely loud.  One could not help but wonder whether or not we did the right thing.  We did!

However, if Irma did not make the eastern jog, and if dry air and wind shear didn't knock her down to a Cat 2+, it may have been a very different outcome."

On Monday, Jon surveyed Lido Shores and emailed us a number of pictures (see below) of the damage around the neighborhood.

Power outages in our neighborhood are sporadic.  Many homes never lost electrical power, although others weren't as lucky, including a stretch on the west side of Morningside Place (where Susie and I are renting while we build) and the east side of Center where the power is off remains off.  Can't wait to open the refrigerator when we return next week.  Eileen O'Donnell's sister Sharon also hunkered down in the hood and reports her power is now back on (Westway Drive) as of Monday evening.

Pumping stations across Sarasota were inundated with water causing a loss of water pressure on the keys.  Water service has now been restored to the barrier islands including Bird Key, Coon Key, St. Armands Key and Lido Key.  A boil water notice is now in effect for 48-hours for those customers who lost water service.  Water customers will be notified when the advisory is lifted.  

Several of the tall pine trees that line the road along Coon Key leading to St. Armand's Circle were downed by the storm, blocking the road Monday morning.  But by noon, the City of Sarasota reopened the John Ringling Bridge and residents were allowed back to their neighborhoods.  

Other items of note:  Mote Aquarium is expected to reopen to the public on Wednesday, Sept.13, and resume normal operations. Staff were on site during the storm, and additional staff arrived Monday to assess the aquarium. All animals are safe, but additional time is needed for clean up.

Longboat Key opened the New Pass Bridge to its residents at 4:00 pm on Monday.  Longboat is also having issues with water pressure and clearing debris from side streets.

Hurricane quick hits

175,000 residents lost power in Sarasota County

Debris and downed trees on private property are the resident’s responsibility; Debris and downed trees on public property, like roadways, are the county’s responsibility.

Report downed power lines, problems with drainage or downed trees to the county here: https://en.seeclickfix.com/sarasota-county

Sarasota County landfill opens 11 a.m. Tuesday, and will be taking yard waste only.

Intersections with non-working traffic lights should be treated as a four-way stop.

Thanks to all who emailed updates, provided information and asked questions.  Special thanks to Jon and Donna Boscia for sharing their experience and for all the photos!  

~Bob Thill
bthill@me.com