TAVARES, FL (352today.com) – A lucky community, Lake County is counting its blessings in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton’s menacing misconduct.
Commissioner’s Address: Focus on Recovery
Lake County Board of County Commissioner’s (BOCC) Chair Kirby Smith addressed residents on Monday morning with the understanding they were going to have to process a lot of data and analysis, and they should direct their focus to what those numbers mean.
“I know that many of you had to endure various hardships during Hurricane Milton,” said Smith. “We know homes and businesses were damaged and that some were even destroyed. Certain communities will have to deal with flooding for the foreseeable future. We are working on that. My heart goes out to you. My thoughts are with you, and we are here for you.”
Appreciation for County Employees
Smith also commended Lake County’s employees and their selflessness prior to, during the severe weather event, and after it, and the sacrifices they made to make certain residents were being taken care of during a time of crisis. Smith was astounded by the work ethic that he had witnessed throughout the storm.
Emergency Operations Update
The Lake County Emergency Operations Center is currently at a Level 2, partial activation, which means there still is staff in their Emergency Operations Center (EOC) that are coordinating operations and resources with local, state and federal partners.
“Lake County has been included in the Federal Disaster Declaration which opens assistance resources to our residents,” said Megan Milanese, Lake County EOC director.
Pre-Storm Preparedness
Prior to Milton, Lake County distributed 148,000 sandbags to the county sandbag sites, 15 shelters were opened and housed more than 1,700 evacuees including 132 special needs residents, and about 300 pets during the severe weather event.
“During the storm our teams responded to 19 life-critical calls by transporting first responders directly to patients using law enforcement armored vehicles,” said Milanese. “Thanks to the work of our first responders we had no reported fatalities from Hurricane Milton. Once the storm did clear we had about 57% of the county, or about 115,000 customers without electricity.”
Post-Storm Impacts
The aftermath of a severe weather event can create a number of emergencies, and the Lake County EOC remains vigilant, knowing that potential problems may arise. The Office of Emergency Management with help from the county staff and its partners will continue to assist the community to the best of their ability, said Milanese.
“As a result of the storm, the St. Johns River at Astor did hit a historic high of 4.81 feet,” said Milanese. “Water doesn’t recede quickly, unfortunately, so we do expect levels to remain high for the foreseeable future. Our Citizens Information Line throughout the duration of the storm, has answered 4,100 phone calls, and staff members in the emergency operations center have managed 1,152 missions related to Hurricane Milton.”
Property Damage and Recovery
Lake County experienced widespread area property damage, and nearly 100,000 homes were affected in some way as a result of the storm. However, the homes that were truly devastated, the number is somewhere between 30 to 40 dwellings, said Lake County property appraiser Carey Baker. The assessments are ongoing.
“As the flood water recedes and we’re able to get in and take a look at those homes we’ll be able to come up with a better dollar value,” said Baker. “Right now, we’re only sitting at probably $10 million in damages that we’ve identified now, but we suspect that will triple or quadruple by the time we finish with all our work. Lots of miracles I think happened during this storm. We’re a lucky community, and we’re blessed here in Lake County.”
Infrastructure and Public Works Response
Public works operations include roads, traffic signals, traffic signs, engineering and right-of-way teams. As soon as the storm was over, first responders, fire and rescue, emergency services, sheriff’s office deputies and the police, checking the roads, 1,400 miles of county-maintained roads, making it a Herculean task, said Lake County assistant county manager and public works director Fred Schneider.
There are two roads that are currently closed to washouts, those in between the Mount Dora and Sorrento area. Wolf Branch Rd. is currently closed and should reopen in two weeks. The cleanup on Brick Rd. will take a little longer before it reopens.
First Responders’ Role
Lake County Fire Rescue and the Lake County Sheriff’s Office worked to make sure that citizens were safe and out of harm’s way during Hurricane Milton, and set up to comfort stations, assisting with the areas experiencing flooding, said Lake County Fire and Rescue Deputy Chief of Operations Anthony Cuellar.