PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — As the Tampa Bay area braces for Hurricane Milton, local officials are issuing county-by-county guidance for residents who will be affected by the storm.
10 Tampa Bay is compiling this guidance and other local information into county-specific guides. We will keep you updated with the latest information as the storm develops. Here's what you need to know for Pinellas County:
FORECAST
Timing: 6 p.m. Wednesday through 6 a.m. Thursday. See the latest forecasts for the area here.
Impact:
- Winds: 80-110 mph
- Rain: 8 to 15 inches
- Surge: 9 to 13 feet
EVACUATIONS
A mandatory evacuation was issued for all residents in evacuation zones A, B and C and all mobile homes beginning at 7 p.m. Monday.
The barrier islands will close at 7 p.m. Tuesday. The area will be restricted to residents, business owners and employees. Re-entry permits or other documentation will be required to enter.
SHELTERS
You can find a list of all the shelters and their status here. County officials say it's important to be sure a location is open before arriving since they operate on an as-needed basis.
"Special needs only" locations are for "residents whose medical condition may require the use of electrical equipment, oxygen, dialysis, or individuals with physical, cognitive, or medical conditions that may require assistance from medical professionals." These locations do not provide continuous bedside nursing.
The following locations are being used as shelters.
Pet friendly:
- Gibbs High 850 34th St S, St. Petersburg
- Largo High 410 Missouri Ave, Largo - Full Capacity
- Palm Harbor University High 1900 Omaha St, Palm Harbor
- Lealman Exchange 5175 45th St N, St. Petersburg - Closed
General shelters:
- Clearwater Fundamental Middle 1660 Palmetto St, Clearwater
- Lealman Innovation 4900 28th St N, Lealman - Full Capacity
- Belleair Elementary 1156 Lakeview Rd, Clearwater
- Campbell Park Elementary 1051 7th Ave S, St. Petersburg
- Carwise Middle 3301 Bently Dr, Palm Harbor - Closed
- Dunedin Elementary 900 Union St, Dunedin - Closed
- Fairmount Park Elementary 575 41ST St S, St. Petersburg
- Jamerson Elementary 1200 37th St S, St. Petersburg - Closed
- McMullen-Booth Elementary 3025 Union St, Clearwater - Closed
- Melrose Elementary 1752 13th Ave S, St. Petersburg
- Mildred Helms Elementary 561 Clearwater Largo Rd S, Largo - Closed
- New Heights Elementary 3901 37th St N, St. Petersburg
- Palm Harbor Middle 1800 Tampa Rd, Palm Harbor
- Ross Norton 1426 S Martin Luther King Jr Ave, Clearwater - Closed
- Sanderlin K-8 2350 22nd Ave S, St. Petersburg - Closed
- Sexton Elementary 1997 54th Ave N, St. Petersburg - Closed
- Skycrest Elementary 10 N Corona Ave, Clearwater - Closed
Special needs shelters:
- Dunedin Middle 70 Patricia Ave, Dunedin
- Oak Grove Middle 1370 S Belcher Rd, Clearwater
- Palm Harbor University High - Building 19 1900 Omaha St, Palm Harbor - Full Capacity
- John Hopkins Middle 701 16th St S, St. Petersburg - Closed
TRANSPORTATION
Wednesday is the last chance to use the free evacuation shuttle service in Manatee, Pinellas, Pasco, Hillsborough, and Sarasota counties. Residents needing transportation to shelters can use shuttle services. Call 800-729-3413 for more information and visit here for shuttle locations.
Pinellas County Shuttle Schedule:
Bus #1: St. Pete Beach, Madeira Beach, Indian Rocks Beach
- A: St. Pete Beach Community Center, 7701 Boca Ciega Dr, St. Pete Beach, FL — 7:00-9:30 a.m.
- B: Winn-Dixie, 15200 Municipal Dr, Madeira Beach, FL — 9:30-11:00 a.m.
- C: Church of the Isles Parking Lot, 200 24th Ave N, Indian Rocks Beach, FL — 11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m
Bus #2:Clearwater Beach, Clearwater Beach Island
- A: Clearwater Beach Parking Lot, 180 S Gulfview Blvd, Clearwater, FL — 7:00-9:30 a.m.
- B: Clearwater Publix Super Market, 200 Island Way, Clearwater, FL — 9:30-11:00 a.m.
Bus #3: North Pinellas County
- A: Winn-Dixie, 1171 S Pinellas Ave, Tarpon Springs, FL — 7:00-9:30 a.m.
- B: Publix, 902 Curley Rd, Dunedin, FL — 9:30-11:00 a.m.
Bus #4: Central Pinellas County
- A: Publix, 619 S Ft Harrison Ave, Clearwater, FL — 7:00-9:30 a.m.
- B: Publix, 13031 Walsingham Rd, Largo, FL — 9:30-11:00 a.m.
Bus #5: Southern Pinellas County
- A: Publix, 5577 Park St, St Petersburg, FL — 7:00-9:30 a.m.
- B: Walmart, 3501 34th St S, St Petersburg, FL — 9:30-11:00 a.m.
WATER SERVICE
Starting at 9 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 8, the city of St. Pete Beach will begin deactivating all waterlines. By noon, waterlines will be completely offline until further notice.
St. Petersburg officials are also weighing on the decision to shut off services to certain parts of the county. At a news conference, officials said they may have to shut off the Northeast and Southwest facilities.
If the St. Pete facilities are shut down, residents may be unable to use plumbing, including toilets, showers, and laundry. Restoration to those services could take more than 24 hours after the storm, depending on the severity of the impacts.
On Tuesday, Oct. 8, the City of Clearwater announced it would be restricting potable water services. Potable water will be restricted on the barrier island beginning Wednesday at 7 a.m., which may cause customers to experience very low water pressure.
These restrictions will go into place following the closure of the barrier islands at 7 p.m. Tuesday.
POWER
You can find the latest power outages on the Duke Energy website here.
CLOSINGS
Schools
You can find the latest school closings on the Florida Department of Education's website here.
County parks, offices, recreation centers
- All Pinellas County Government offices, including the Clerk of the Courts, Property Appraiser, and Tax Collector, will be closed through October 11. County parks and preserves will remain closed through that date as well.
- St. Petersburg city facilities will be closed all week - Oct. 7-11
- Clearwater also closed city offices, buildings, recreation centers and libraries on Monday.
- Pinellas Park's city facilities are closed starting Tuesday until further notice.
- The City's debris management site, located at 1953 72nd St. N, will be closed on Wednesday, Oct. 8.
Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority
PSTA services will not be running on Wednesday, and the administrative office will be closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
After 2 p.m. Tuesday, PSTA will run specific evacuation services at the direction of county officials.
Department of Health
Offices in the county will be closed on Monday until further notice.
St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport (PIE)
The airport terminal will close after the last flight on Tuesday, October 8. It will remain closed on Wednesday and Thursday. All Allegiant flights were canceled for both days, and travelers are encouraged to contact airlines directly for updates on cancellations and flight resumption.
Bridges
- Sunshine Skyway Bridge is closed to all traffic as of 11:30 a.m. The Sunshine Skyway Bridge closes when sustained wind speeds exceed 45 mph.
- The Howard Frankland Bridge is now closed to all traffic.
- Westbound Gandy Bridge is now closed to all traffic.
- Westbound Courtney Campbell is now closed to all traffic.
Sandbags
All sandbag locations are closed.
