JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Tropical storm watches and warnings were issued Friday for many parts of Florida as Potential Tropical Cyclone 4 approaches the Gulf this weekend.
RELATED | Tropical Storm Watches, Warnings issued as Potential Tropical Cyclone 4 approaches Florida
There’s a strong chance this could become Tropical Storm Debby.
The storm may impact Northeast Florida on Sunday evening through Monday or Tuesday, and several counties across the area are already preparing for potential impact.
City of Jacksonville & JEA
The City of Jacksonville said it is prepared to respond to flooding and other storm-related issues this weekend.
“While it is too early to accurately predict the exact impacts on Duval County, this system may produce local heavy rainfall with potential flooding,” the city wrote in a news release.
Jacksonville residents are encouraged to sign up for AlertJax notifications, assess your home or property now, and clean out debris from storm drains and gutters.
As of Friday afternoon, there were no schedule changes for the City of Jacksonville offices, the Jacksonville Transportation Authority, or Duval County Public Schools. There were also no planned evacuation orders or shelters opening either.
In addition, JEA said its “2,200-plus team members stand ready to mobilize and respond as needed as this tropical system approaches.”
JEA encouraged customers to ensure their contact information is up to date on their JEA.com account and to sign up for voice, email or text alerts. In the event of an outage, JEA will be able to contact customers directly with restoration updates. Customers who have enrolled in outage alerts also can text “OUT” to MyJEA (69532) to report their outage.
Clay County
Clay County officials will open two sandbag stations Saturday and Sunday morning from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
One of the stations will be located in Fleming Island at 4287 Lakeshore Drive. The second location will be in Middleburg at 4317 County Road 218.
There will be a limit of 10 bags per person.
Clay County Emergency Management said residents are encouraged to sign up for Alert Clay at Alert.ClayCountyGov.com and know their evacuation zones.
If the storm does move across Clay County, it is expected to produce heavy rains that can affect low-lying areas prone to flooding, including the Black Creek, the North and South Prongs, and along the St. Johns River.
St. Johns County
The St. Johns County Emergency Operations Center said it is monitoring the storm, and urged residents to keep a close eye on the forecast as things are expected to develop over the weekend.
The county gave away 12,000 sandbags Wednesday to residents in preparation for this hurricane season. Officials noted this sandbag giveaway was a pre-planned event and not in advance of this storm.
Nassau County
Nassau County is also preparing for the threat of prolonged rain with the potential tropical storm on the way meeting with county and state leaders as well as the National Weather Service.
How to prepare:
- Review your plans
- Know your evacuation zone
- Prepare your disaster supply kit
Alachua County
Alachua County Emergency Management officials said they are also monitoring the tropical system.
According to a news release, officials said Alachua County is already between 4 to 7 inches above their normal 30-day rainfall totals, so flooding is a concern.
“Residents and visitors should be taking steps early to secure property in areas that are at high risk for flooding. Homes and other properties in flood-prone areas should be assessed to determine if there are ways to protect the property from flooding danger,” county officials wrote.
Sign up for text alerts by texting the word ALACHUA to 888-777 to stay fully informed of any disaster-related information related specifically to Alachua County.
The county will also be providing updates through its Facebook page.