MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. (SNN) — Anna Maria Island is left with wind, rain, and storm surge effects after Hurricane Idalia passed through.
Despite access to the island being reopened Wednesday night, many stores and beaches remain closed.
The Manatee County Beach Patrol says some areas were hit so badly that reopening isn’t even a thought in their minds.
“Coquina and Cortez beaches, for the foreseeable future, will be closed due to damage from the storm. Both to our lifeguard stands to the park, to the trees. It’s just not a safe place right now. We still have strong currents, strong rip currents. The water is very churned up. We’re not sure of the debris that could be in there,” said Beach Patrol Lieutenant Lucas Hitchins.
The storm surge also left many roads on the island impassable.
Parks and Grounds Maintenance crews are working to get the damage cleaned up, but they’re not the only ones.
“I mean, the pools are all submerged under water, a lot of them. They’re brown and green and yellow and all different colors,” said the owner of Bright Water Pools, Clyde St. Leon.
St. Leon owns a pool cleaning business and says the storm surge sent water from canals and the Bay into many pools on the island.
“There’s bacteria, germs, everything in the pool. They have to stay out until the pool is cleared up and back to normal,” said St. Leon.
The Beach Patrol wants to emphasize that just because the holiday weekend is approaching, there are still strong currents and to be cautious near the water.
Manatee Public Beach will be staffed tomorrow for those wanting to go to the beach in Manatee County.