ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – It was business as usual Friday night in St. Augustine as thousands of people were out enjoying Nights of Lights.
The festivities were in full swing despite a Nor’easter forecasted to impact Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia this weekend.
Usually, when a big storm hits the area, a section of downtown St. Augustine next to the Matanzas River floods pretty badly, but the management at Harry’s Seafood Bar & Grille said they’re not worried.
Harry’s will be open for lunch on Saturday, but manager Michael Dennis said they will be monitoring weather conditions to see if they will need to close and prepare for flood waters.
“If the rain got heavy and we can see if the roads start to flood, it might be a dirty job doing it in the rain but we got it down to where we can get it done pretty quick. We can board up and be done in a couple of hours with the staff we have here to do it,” Dennis said.
Dennis said the restaurant is also equipped with water pumps should a floodwater breach the inside of the restaurant.
And while Nights of Lights is uninterrupted, the same can’t be said for Deck the Chairs holiday light attraction In Jacksonville Beach. Deck the Chairs organizers were not taking any chances with a storm forecasted to bring high wind and heavy rainfall to the area. So, the light display and all the extra activities that go along with the display have been canceled for the weekend. News4JAX spoke with both locals and tourists visiting from as far as Singapore who made plans to enjoy the display Friday night.
“I never expected the weather to be like this. Usually, it would be cold and sunny and really good weather. Right now, I feel like we are in a hurricane season,” said Ruth Aquino.
“Thought we would make our way down here tonight before we head out of town tomorrow. I guess not. No lights tonight,” Whit Brighton said.
Deck the Chair organizers said they will likely have the light display back up and running by Tuesday.