SANFORD, Fla. – The St. John’s River just finally dropped to “minor” flood stage but it won’t take much rain to lift it back to “moderate” flood stage or worse, Seminole County Emergency Manager Alan Harris warned Monday as Subtropical Storm Nicole tracks toward Florida.
“No one wanted to hear that, no one wants to hear that but that is what it looks like as of today,” he said. “To compound that there is now some debris in creeks and rivers from Hurricane Ian. So that potentially could slow the flow of water. So we don’t know what effect that’s going to have on this event as well.”
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Harris encouraged homeowners who came close to flooding during and after Hurricane Ian to consider sandbagging their homes.
“And of course it all depends where those rain bands fall,” Harris said. “In Hurricane Ian those rain bands fell all over the county but certainly a large concentration in Winter Springs. We saw upwards of 20 inches of rain in certain areas of Winter Springs. That’s why the creek became a river.”
Harris also worries about leftover debris piles so he lifted dump fees for the next 72 hours, in case anyone with their own means can drop off their old debris that is still sitting around so it doesn’t become new debris during Nicole.
“And that’s a major concern for us,” Harris said. “We saw that in 2004 with three hurricanes, Charlie, Frances and Jeanne. Unfortunately, we’re seeing that again.”
Seminole County announced eight sandbag locations county-wide.
County Locations:
Old Geneva Volunteer Fire Station, 217 2nd St., Geneva - Monday, Nov. 7, 10:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m. and Tuesday, Nov. 8, 8:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m.
Lake Monroe Wayside Park, 4150 Highway 17, Sanford - Monday, Nov. 7, 10:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m. and Tuesday, Nov. 8, 8:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m.
BOOMBAH Sports Complex, 3450 E Lake Mary Blvd, Sanford - Monday, Nov. 7, 10:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m. and Tuesday, Nov. 8, 8:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m.
City Locations:
City of Longwood: Candyland Park, 599 Longdale Ave., Longwood
City of Winter Springs: Central Winds Park, 1000 Central Winds Drive, Winter Springs. Up to 10 sandbags per household. - Monday, Nov. 7 thru Friday, Nov. 11, 9:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m., while supplies last.
City of Altamonte Springs: Merrill Park, 985 Merrill Park Drive, Altamonte Springs
City of Sanford: Public Works Complex, 800 W Fulton St., Sanford
City of Oviedo: Public Works Maintenance Yard, 1785 Evans St., Oviedo - Monday, Nov. 7, 12:00-5:00 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 8 and Wednesday, Nov. 9, 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.
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