News and Events on Florida Gulf Sun Coast
Anna Maria Island seems to have survived the closure of one of its three bridges for 37 days. The maintenance and repair job was done faster than the projected 45-day project that had been planned. As islanders heave a sigh of relief, it is interesting to look back at the whole issue of bridges and [...]
Anna Maria Island bridge will close from early morning, Monday, September 29th, to allow planned repairs.
The closure is for 45 days, but may be shorter if the work progresses ahead of schedule, or longer if there are delays.
Traffic to and from the island will be detoured to the Cortez bridge to the south. Increased traffic [...]
All eyes were on the tropics this week as a tropical depression in the Atlantic became a storm named Fay, when wind speeds hit 39 mph.
As Fay crossed the Dominican Republic and Haiti, forecasters correctly predicted a turn to the NW and over Cuba. With no sign of weakening over land, Fay headed toward [...]
Even with recent thunderstorms and measurable rainfall, watering restrictions have been extended for the 16 counties monitored by Southwest Florida Water Management District (Swiftmud).
Swiftmud said that the area received 5 inches average of rain in June, which is about two thirds normal. The current rainfall deficit is 17.2″ over the last two years of [...]
The official start to the Atlantic Hurricane Season is June 1st. Now is a good time to make preparations for an emergency evacuation and formulate your disaster plan.
The Colorado State University Tropical Meteorology Project has published its forecast for the Atlantic basin hurricane activity, based on 58 years of past data and predictive statistical analysis. [...]
In another episode of the continuing non-reality show of “Let’s see what FEMA rules are today”, letters from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to the local island cities offices announced that buildings “having the lowest floor one foot or more below the base flood elevation will no longer be eligible for the CRS discount.”
The Community [...]
City of Holmes Beach commissioners presented their first reading of a draft new ordinance related to building code and permitting in the city’s floodplain.
The 31-page ordinance is the result of FEMA, (We’re Here To Help You), having questions about code implementation and compliance with current standards.
On February 12th, the city commissioners put a moratorium on [...]
As if the housing market slowdown were not enough to challenge local contractors, now Holmes Beach City has stopped issuing all building permits.
The City of Holmes Beach Commissioners decided the building department stop granting “requests for construction, reconstruction, or improvement of buildings or structures within the flood hazard areas” beginning February 12th. All building is [...]
Does “daylight savings time” save energy? Does it save money? Does it save lives? Does getting up when the sun is lower in the morning sky mean you have more time before you go to bed at night?
“One hundred years ago when they first proposed this, they said it was about saving energy,” said [...]
Fire Weather Advisory
for Counties including Manatee
The National Weather Service at Ruskin FL Issued 06:11 EST Saturday Jan 19 2008 A FIRE WEATHER WATCH in effect from Sunday morning though Sunday afternoon…
A cooler and drier air mass will move into the area Sunday as high pressure builds across the area. Afternoon humidities are expected to [...]
Highlights:
High water and flooding on Anna Maria Island from TS Barry
Lower seasonal activity than predicted
Record of 2 Category 5 hurricanes
Record number of storms (9) in one month (Sep)
No major hurricane landfalls in US
15 storms
6 hurricanes
2 major (Cat3+)
Tags: Advisories, Hurricanes, News, Tropical Storms
