Hurricane Michael expected to bring rain and storm surge to Manatee County – By Chris Anderson (heraldtribune.com) / Oct 8 2018
Emergency officials say residents should monitor the system in case of any sudden shifts in its path.
Though officials do not expect Hurricane Michael to have a direct impact on Manatee County, they are advising residents to monitor the storm closely in case of any sudden shifts.
As a precaution, a tropical storm watch has been issued for coastal Manatee County, while Anna Maria Island is under a storm surge watch as tides will be particularly high when the storm is in the Gulf. In addition, Gov. Rick Scott has declared a state of emergency for the county.
As of Monday, the county said it will not be opening any shelters but will be dispensing sandbags at three sites on Tuesday: GT Bray Park, 5502 33rd Ave. Dr. West; Bennett Park, 400 Cypress Creek Road, and the Bradenton Area Convention Center, 1 Haben Blvd. Residents with proper identification will be limited to 10 sandbags per household. The sandbags will be available between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. at the three locations.
While the hurricane is taking aim at the Panhandle, Manatee County interim Emergency Management chief Steve Litschauer said Monday that the county could receive 2-8 inches of rain while 2-4 feet of storm surge is a possibility along the coast.
“We are monitoring our coastal communities very closely,″ Litschauer said at a news conference.
The distance between the county and the storm’s eyewall will determine the seriousness of the threat as tropical force winds could extend 120 miles out.
“We’re going to watch and monitor this closely,″ said Congressman Vern Buchanan, who attended the media briefing. “We want to be hopeful but we want to be prepared in case it does make a turn.
“Hurricane Charley, when that storm was coming up the coast, it was supposed to hit Tampa and it was a Category 2 and it instantly went to a Category 4 and it did a beeline into north of Fort Myers. So these storms make up their own minds in terms of where they want to go.″
If there is any impact from the storm as far as rain and wind, Litschauer said it would be felt Tuesday night into Wednesday morning.
County officials also noted that what is known as “king tide″ is expected to happen this week. That is when a predicted tide is at its highest level of the year.
