JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan said on Monday that Duval County schools will be closed for three days as the city prepares for the impact of Tropical Storm Idalia which will hit the area later this week.
Deegan said she has declared a local state of emergency and said residents of Northeast Florida should prepare for hurricane-strength conditions in Northeast Florida.
“There is the potential for substantial flooding in vulnerable neighborhoods along the St. Johns River and along the Atlantic coast. We anticipate the risk of high rip currents as well throughout the week so this is absolutely no time to be in the water over the next couple of days,” Deegan said during a news conference with city officials. “We also forecast strong sustained tropical-storm-force winds and hurricane-force gusts with up to a three-foot storm surge.”
Deegan said all Jacksonville city buildings will close for nonessential personnel on Tuesday and Wednesday and Duval County Public Schools will close all district schools on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. No decision has been made for Friday, the district said.
“That’s in prep because we got to get shelters ready and we have to make sure that we’re prepared ahead of time,” Deegan said.
Deegan said six hurricane shelters will open on Tuesday at Chimney Lakes Elementary, Lavilla Middle School, Ocean Way Elementary, Landmark Middle School, Atlantic Coast High School and at the Legends Center. Chimney Lakes and Landmark will be pet-friendly shelters and Atlantic Coast High School can accommodate those with special needs.
JEA crews were out on Monday trimming trees getting ready for possible high winds and the city was also preparing flood pumps and other measures to help during the storm.
While the city was preparing, many residents seemed to be caught off guard by the approaching storm, and many weren’t taking steps Monday to prepare their homes. Denise Sibley, who was at the Legends Center on Monday, had no idea what could be coming.
“I knew nothing about it and you are saying they are going to be using this as a shelter. It must be very serious,” Sibley said.
News4JAX asked Deegan about people like Sibley and others who had been calling the newsroom throughout the day who were not aware of the storm.
“With respect, I don’t think this was a surprise,” Deegan said. “I think our folks at the National Weather Service and our local meteorologists have been watching this area for a while and take a look at the warm waters in the Gulf. You can see why there’s concern for possible rapid intensification there. So, we just have to be on guard and very careful. I mean, this is the world we live in when our water temperatures are so warm.”
In Riverside, which has seen its share of flooding from storms, Adrian Knight said he knows what could be coming and he’s concerned.
“What I’m doing is preparing, my checklist, so I’d be ready when it comes. As soon as I get off I am going to get to it,” Knight said.
News4JAX also spoke with Paul Nash who lives in a Middleburg mobile home
“I’m worried a little bit about the wind. We live in a mobile home, but in all the years I’ve been in Florida, never really had much. One time it blew the awning off my trailer in 40 years so I consider myself pretty lucky,” Nash said.
More information is available on JaxReady.com.
MORE: Tropical Storm Idalia is expected to become a hurricane and move toward Florida, forecasters say
Tropical Storm Idalia intensified early Monday and was expected to become a major hurricane before it reaches Florida’s Gulf coast, the National Hurricane Center said Monday, warning of an increasing risk of life-threatening storm surge and dangerous hurricane-force winds in Florida as soon as late Tuesday.
Current forecasts show the potential for inland hurricane-strength wind gusts in Northeast Florida and Southeast Georiga on Wednesday with the elevated possibility of tornadoes.