JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan declared a local state of emergency Sunday morning ahead of Tropical Storm Debby.
Following the local declaration of state of emergency, the Jacksonville City Council held a special meeting in the Council Chamber where officials discussed the latest updates on the storm that’s expected to become a Category 1 hurricane.
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Mayor Donna Deegan’s Chief Administrative Officer and the Emergency Management Leadership reported to the Council on the status of the storm at the special meeting.
While some Northeast Florida counties are under a Tropical Storm Watch, Duval County is not under a watch or warning. However, the county is expected to get significant rainfall.
The biggest impact is expected late Sunday night and potentially Tuesday going into Wednesday, as the storm is expected to slow down and hover.
JFRD Fire Chief Keith Powers said the local state of emergency allows them to increase their protective measures.
There are no evacuation orders in place. However, Powers said JFRD is working with JTA to get people out of low lying areas as flooding is a concern.
“Get your homes prepared, loose debris picked up and get ready for what’s coming,” Powers said.
Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters said his office is also ready to help as requested, and that they will have 30 extra officers on Sunday.
According to the Duval County Supervisor of Elections, early voting, which was supposed to kick off Monday, will be postponed until Wednesday.
Officials also announced that there are three shelters open for those in need.
- LaVilla Middle School: Holds 1792 people. Address: 501 N Davis Street.
- Landmark Middle School: Holds 2,200 people. Address: 101 Kernan Blvd N.
- Legends Center: Holds 250 people. Address: 5130 Soutel Drive.
People who need help with transportation can call 904-630-3100.
In addition, Public Works officials said they are looking at keeping trash collection as scheduled on Monday, and they will be monitoring the storm to assess if Tuesday’s trash collection needs to be moved.
If Public Works decides to cancel trash pickup on Tuesday, then it would get moved to Wednesday, and the trash pickup schedule would shift one day.
Call 904-630-0500 to report downed trees.