A.G. Gancarski
Northeast Florida avoided the Irma landfall impact, but wind damage and rampant flooding were — and in some places, are — major impacts.
In Orange Park, flooding impacted residences by the river and — a bit south of town — along Black Creek. Tuesday saw Gov. Rick Scott in town to discuss the path forward.
Apartment complexes and condos were deluged, as was the city’s public works yard and other low-lying areas.
“The flooding was horrible up here,” Scott said. “It’s unbelievable how much water they got.”
Though the flooding has largely abated, Scott saw the goal of this visit to find out what “unmet needs” there are, vowing to bring federal and state resources to help.
One such need: a bridge on SR-218, damaged by the storm; a Clay County Commissioner noted that Scott — “the infrastructure governor” — could help with that.
Another such need: help for farmers whose agriculture was damaged by flooding.
“I was down in Hendry County Saturday, and they were talking about the devastation to the citrus industry,” Scott said, wanting more detail on how to match resources to needs.
The general feeling around the table: while the process of recovery is ongoing, stakeholders gave high marks to the Governor’s handling of the crisis.
CFO Jimmy Patronis called Scott’s marshalling of resources “miraculous,” noting that his office seeks to ensure that people — specifically insurance policy holders — don’t get “damaged after the storm” by “fraudsters.”
“There are people cold [knocking] on doors,” Patronis said, attempting to bilk the unwary into repairs after this “150-year storm event.”
Scott noted that over 300 people were rescued from storm flooding in the Black Creek area, rescues abetted by state and federal forces alike.
In other promising news, Citizens Insurance will have adjusters on the ground locally by Friday. While some customers are frustrated by the pace of claims, the sheer magnitude of claims requires patience.
Rep. Ted Yoho noted that throughout his district, flooding has been “extensive.” As with Patronis, he lauded the Governor’s leadership, also giving Attorney General Pam Bondi credit.
Stakeholders all around the table lauded the teamwork on all levels of government; from local mayors to heads of utilities, the discussion was almost uniformly positive.
