TAMPA, Fla. — Although Hurricane Debby made landfall in the Big Bend region, the Tampa Bay area, specifically Manatee County, felt the effects of the outer bands that caused torrential rains and flooding.
Sen. Rick Scott joined Manatee County leaders Tuesday morning to give an update on recovery efforts following the tropical storm that strengthened into a hurricane hours before it made landfall.
County Commissioner Mike Rahn said the storm brought "massive amounts" of rain to the county, and the emergency operations team has been working around the clock to assist residents. He noted that there were more than 55 water rescues to save more than 200 individuals and even two horses.
Rainfall amounts
Widespread flooding was reported across the county with nearly 12 inches of rain reported at the Sarasota Bradenton International Airport weather station, according to a news release.
"This was historic," he said. "Some places got up to 18 inches of rain in Manatee County and along with high tides, that's what caused a lot of this."
Rahn said their call center took more than 2,200 calls over the past three days. The county's flood management handled a 100-year flood during the storm, Rahan said. The dam at Lake Manatee released water to mitigate the impact of heavy rainfall.
Manatee County road closures
There are currently 65 road closures across the county mostly because of flooding, according to the county's severe weather information center.
Some of the biggest closures include:
- All lanes of State Road 70 are closed from Ogleby Creek Road to Verna Road and another stretch from Bourneside Boulevard to Post Boulevard
- All lanes on County Road 675 are closed near Jim Davis Road, which is closed too
- All lanes on Lakewood Ranch Boulevard are closed from State Road 70 to University Parkway
You can check out all the road closures here.
Federal assistance
Scott said he met with FEMA officials over the past week to make sure resources are available to Floridians.
He urged residents to comply with FEMA rules to get a discount on flood insurance.
"We will do everything we can to make sure that all federal resources whether it's FEMA, Department of Agriculture, whatever it is," he said at the news conference.
County closures
The Manatee Beach and concessions and Coquina Beach are both closed until further notice. The county's offices and facilities, such as libraries, animal shelters and parks, reopened Tuesday and the Manatee County Area Transit also resumed Tuesday.
Garbage and recycling also resumed Tuesday morning.
Power outages
Only about 0.3% of the county's residents still don't have power, according to a power outage map from Florida Power and Light.
