SARASOTA COUNTY – In the month since Hurricane Ian made landfall on Sept. 28, Sarasota County staff has worked to restore services, collect debris and provide support to the most impacted communities.Through established partnerships, the county continues to work through the recovery process in collaboration with our municipal, nonprofit, state and federal partners. “We recognize the tremendous efforts of county staff. They have all shown their dedication to public service, and our community has shown their resiliency in the midst of a disaster,” said Emergency Services Director Rich Collins. “We also greatly appreciate the patience of our community as crews work diligently to help us all navigate the recovery process after Hurricane Ian. In the face of adversity, we are all stronger together, and our community has certainly come together to help each other during this time,” added Collins. |
See this link of the Oct. 28 update from the Sarasota County Emergency Operations Center. Before, during and after the storm, staff worked 24 hours a day in the Emergency Operations Center, 14 evacuation centers and departmental operations centers to provide updates, emergency notifications and support services to the community. |
Initial estimates indicated approximately $135 million in damage to residences across the county and initial assessments determined five times more debris was generated than during Hurricane Irma in 2017. Sarasota County’s recovery by the numbers: |
The 311 Contact Center answered more than 25,000 calls, connecting community members with valuable resources and handled between 3,500 and 4,000 phone calls from North Port while their contact center was out of service.County transit services provided over 970 transportation trips to and from the evacuation centers.Public Utilities restored service to the barrier islands by the morning of Oct. 1 after they were isolated on Sept. 27. Utilities also supported Manatee County and Englewood Water District by supplying Englewood Water District with approximately 1.5 million gallons per day of potable water until their systems were restored and provided a generator to Manatee County to support their well field. Public Works restored 176 traffic signals by Oct. 3 and re-installed more than 900 stop signs.Mosquito Management Services resumed aerial spray missions on Oct. 4, treating more than 33,740 acres in the City of North Port and over 58,500 acres in Sarasota County by Oct. 11. Solid Waste contractors began collecting storm debris on Oct. 6. They continue to operate seven days a week collecting vegetative and construction and demolition debris. To date, more than 1.2 million cubic yards of debris have been removed from the public right-of-way. The county has petitioned the Federal Emergency Management Agency to allow and accelerate debris removal from impacted mobile home communities in southern portions of the county. Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources reopened 130 of the county’s parks and 75 percent of athletic fields. The Legacy Trail is open in its entirety and Turtle Beach Campground is open and taking reservations. Snook Haven Park and Riverside Restaurant remain closed, but kayak and boat launches are accessible. See the latest park status report online at scgov.net/parks. Libraries and Historical Resources: The Shannon Staub Library continues to serve as the Disaster Recovery Center, and the Elsie Quirk Library remains closed due to damages sustained in the storm. It is planned to reopen Tuesday, Nov. 1, with normal hours of operation. Other library locations are open normal hours.Planning and Development Services has issued more than 600 express permits for storm-related repairs.Communications expanded outreach notifications using Ring Neighbors, Next Door and Alert Sarasota County mobile applications, as well daily calls to local radio stations that service the Englewood and North Port communities. Communications also updated City of North Port and City of Venice websites and assisted with social media while their services were down, keeping information flowing to city residents. |
County staff continue to work alongside nonprofit, municipal, local, state and federal partners to help the community access resources to recover from the impacts of Hurricane Ian. Individual assistance, small business administration and more recovery resources remain available. Visit scgov.net/recoveryfor more information.The deadline for Operation Blue Roof has been extended through Nov. 1. To learn more and apply, visit BlueRoof.us. The home cleanup hotline for Crisis Cleanup will remain open through Nov. 4. To learn more, call 800-451-1954. Individual, Small Business Administration and Homeowner’s Insurance Deductible assistance are available. Hurricane season lasts through November 30. It is paramount that community members remain vigilant and prepared. For more information on hurricane preparedness, visit scgov.net. See this link for images of Hurricane Ian impacts and recovery, courtesy of Sarasota County. For more information call 3-1-1 or visit scgov.net. |