Tropical Storm Elsa could bring heavy rain across Putnam County

Putnam County commissioners listen to Executive Director of Public Safety J.R. Grimes, right, outline the county’s mobilization plan for Hurricane Elsa.

Putnam County commissioners declared a state of emergency Monday with Tropical Storm Elsa expected to approach Florida this afternoon.

Tropical Storm Elsa is the first confirmed hurricane of the 2021 season. According to the National Hurricane Center, the storm has clocked winds of 60 mph. It struck the Dominican Republic and Haiti as a Category 1 hurricane though it fell back to tropical storm levels. On Monday, the storm threatened Cuba.

The storm’s track has it entering Florida’s panhandle and continuing eastward through the coasts of Georgia and South Carolina.

Executive Director of Public Safety J.R. Grimes said first responders didn’t have a lot of time. He expected 2-6 inches of rain and 4-6 inches of rain in some pockets of North and West Putnam.

Equipment will be staged in West Putnam and Bardin and county employees will check the county’s bridges. Grimes said the county is likely to face power outages and road damage. He said the county projects to have 7 inches of rain higher than average in some areas.

“We’re definitely going to have issues after this thing passes through us,” Grimes said.

Commissioner Larry Harvey said a lot depended on briefings today and the county could have 24 hours to mobilize. Commissioner Bill Pickens asked about shelters, and Grimes said the county would discuss the matter with the Putnam County School District.

“That’s one thing we’re going to look at when (Tropical Storm Elsa) comes off of Cuba tomorrow. We don’t want to pull the trigger too fast on that. However, if it does come off (today) and it looks like it’s going to make a significant impact, we want to have as much pre-planning as possible.”

County Administrator Terry Suggs said the county will have its call center active, send updates through social media and its Putnam Alert system and will meet with local stakeholders.

“This is a precautionary measure. I want to state that very clearly,” Suggs said. “Once this hits us, we will have a very limited window of time to be able to do what we need to do as far as activating any kind of shelters … or if there’s any folks with special needs that need to be taken care of.

Residents can sign up for weather and safety alerts at PutnamAlert.com. The call center, which is open 8a.m.-8 p.m., can be contacted at 329-1904.

In a press release, county officials said residents in flood-prone areas should take necessary precautions and higher winds will be seen along the St. Johns River and lakes and open fields. The press release urged residents to be cautious with fallen trees and to avoid traveling during severe weather.

There will be four locations offering sandbags starting 7:30 a.m. today:

East Palatka Community Park, 223 Putnam County Blvd, Palatka.
Bardin Volunteer Fire Department, 107 Johns Road, Palatka.
Chesser Sand Pit, 145 W. Washington St., Hawthorne.
Huntington Landfill, 1553 County Road 308, Crescent City.

In Palatka, sand and bags will be available 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. at the corner of 11th Street and St. Johns Avenue. Sand and bags are available on a first-come, first-served, self-service basis.