Judging from the amount of traffic around town, and from the FPL power restoration numbers, life is slowly returning back to normal in Palm Coast. Much of the flood waters on non-intracoastal and oceanfront properties has receded, too. But there are still problems caused by Hurricane Ian; below is the Friday, September 30, 2022, update from the Flagler County Emergency Operations Center:
- Business Damage Assessment Survey– Are you a business owner? Click here to take this survey. In partnership with Flagler County emergency management officials and Florida’s Department of Economic Opportunity, business owners are strongly urged to take this survey, which will help inform where help is needed most. The Chamber has spoken to dozens of business owners, and the early reports state only minor damage throughout Flagler County. However, many more calls are yet to come in. Stay tuned.
- Flagler Schools- Superintendent Cathy Mittelstadt stated the School District will make an assessment on when students can return to class at 6 p.m. on Saturday, October 1st.
- Flagler Beach Pier- As mentioned yesterday, the Flagler Pier suffered significant damage. Assessments are underway to determine next steps. Unfortunately this may not happen until next week. Read the full story from the Palm Coast Observer.
- West Flagler Flooding at Crescent Lake and Dead Lake- Water levels are anticipated to rise inland at Crescent Lake and Dead Lake. As a reminder, the St. Johns River runs North, so all the stormwater from Central Florida is flowing North, through Flagler towards Jacksonville.
- A1A Concerns- The City of Flagler Beach has expressed concerns about A1A, with potential damage if dunes continue to errode. A portion of A1A south of SR 100 is closed at this time.
- Power Restoration– Many FPL trucks are working in our community. At time of writing, more than 19,000 Flagler County residents remained without power. That is at least 5,000 more residents with power, based on data from earlier this morning.
- Spectrum Provides Free WiFi at Access Hotspots– Click here to see the map to locate where you can get free WiFi in Flagler County.
- Cleanup Crews- Local government officials are working to cleanup the community and have asked for residents to limit travel to allow emergency cleanup crews to do their jobs to help reopen our communities. A significant amount of cleanup has already occurred and the Chamber thanks all cleanup crews for their extra effort!
- Shelters- Government officials will attempt to close shelters later today. Special needs shelters will require residents to first have power, before being sent home.
For more information, please visit the Flagler County Emergency Management website, here.
The Chamber will continue to provide regular coverage and will soon share a survey to local businesses, in partnership with emergency management officials, to determine the storm’s impact on the business community.