Official: Storm’s westward shift minimized damage
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BRANDON D. OLIVER/Palatka Daily News – A group of men plays golf Wednesday afternoon at the Palatka Golf Club after it was clear the city had not sustained major damage from Hurricane Idalia.
Putnam County officials prepared for the worst from Hurricane Idalia, but emergency operations began demobilizing by Wednesday afternoon because of the storm’s light impact on the area.
Shelters set up for Hurricane Idalia closed at 2 p.m. Wednesday, but Deputy County Administrator J.R. Grimes said people started leaving them once they saw the extent of the storm’s damage, which reportedly wasn’t too much.
As of 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, Grimes said, emergency officials saw a few downed trees and some powerline damage. Putnam’s emergency call center was set to shut down operations at 5 p.m. Wednesday.
“We were very fortunate,” Grimes said. “We were spared very gracefully.”
On Monday and Tuesday, Government bodies throughout Putnam County, including Welaka, which saw significant flooding during previous storms, issued states of emergency regarding Hurricane Idalia. However, Welaka Mayor Jamie Watts took to social media to say the town saw only minor damage during early inspections of the area.
He said the town saw a few downed trees and some streets flooded in areas that were expected.
“Trust me when I say this could have been a lot worse,” Watts stated Wednesday. “While we didn’t get a direct hit this time, all it would have required was the storm to have moved a hundred miles east. It would have been a completely different story this morning in Welaka.”
According to the National Weather Service, temperatures in Palatka were in the high 80s with some breezes. Still, Putnam County was under a tropical storm warning throughout Wednesday, according to the weather agency.
As of 7 p.m. Wednesday, Clay Electric Cooperative reported 895 outages among its 22,272 customers in Putnam. Florida Power & Light said 7,910 of its 20,600 Putnam customers had experienced power outages, but as of 7 p.m. Wednesday, only 120 customers were still without power.
“We understand how difficult it is to be without power,” FPL CEO and President Armando Pimentel stated in a news release Wednesday. “That’s why our dedicated men and women are working around the clock to restore power safely and as quickly as possible to get our customers’ lives back to normal. We urge customers to remain vigilant, as conditions remain dangerous.”
Trash pickups and governments reopening
Crescent City will conduct yard waste pickups today and Saturday. Mayor Michele Myers said Crescent City saw only a few tree limbs and moss littering the area.
“Our heart and prayers go out to those impacted by this storm,” she stated Wednesday.
Palatka’s trash pickup and other city operations are to resume Thursday. County and municipal buildings will also reopen to the public Thursday.
“We are completely open for business tomorrow,” Peter Willott, Palatka’s public information officer, said Wednesday.
The 7th Judicial Circuit Court of Florida will resume its operations in Putnam County on Friday, and the Putnam County School District’s plan is to return to school and recreational activities Friday.
Superintendent Rick Surrency said schools will be closed so teachers and bus drivers can assess any damages that could impact their routes to school. The superintendent has also contacted principals to let them know sports teams could practice Thursday afternoon if principals were OK with it.
