JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. — Tropical Storm Ian is expected to really be felt across our area late Thursday and many living and working in Jacksonville Beach continue to prepare for the storm.
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Action News Jax saw a property maintenance team boarding up and placing sandbags in at least six businesses between Second and Third streets. All of it to be safe, rather than sorry as Hurricane Ian continues to drag across the state.
“We will seal everything up and then we put the sand on top of it,” the supervisor told Action News Jax.
The First Alert Weather team says winds coming off the ocean are bringing rain to the beaches ahead of Ian, adding that waves will be at least 10 feet.
The Wreck Tiki Bar and Lounge is right on First Street next to the beach. Owner Fernando Meza stayed open today, but is closing for the worst of Ian in the next few days.
“I’m crossing my fingers praying to God everything is very minimal hoping the dunes will do their job,” he said.
There are no evacuation orders in place for Duval County, but Mayor Lenny Curry said if you dealt with flooding during Hurricanes Matthew and Irma in zones A and B, you should highly consider leaving the area.
He announced Wednesday night that Atlantic, Neptune and Jacksonville beaches are now closed to the public.
Beach neighbors like Heather Ruane say they’re staying put and are prepared for what’s to come.
“It’s probably a cause for concern but it’s not something we’re not used to,” she said. “If we lose power, we lose power. We have plenty of food, great neighbors.”
Meza said the business has been through Hurricanes Matthew and Irma, saying it didn’t take any water because they boarded up.
Ahead of Ian, it’s likely a similar preparation.
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“There’s an 80% possibility we will board up again and do it all over again,” he said.
Mayor Curry said right now, there are no plans for a curfew but everything is fluid. We also asked about the Jacksonville Beach pier that reopened recently. We told you back in March that it cost over $11 million to fortify and rebuild. The mayor said he was told by the engineers that it will stand.
For essential information for Duval County, including the Jacksonville Beach area, please click here.
