Long before slow-moving Tropical Storm Beryl reached land, its effects were being felt across its potential path, canceling Memorial Day observances and ramping up the area for a soggy start to the week.
Jacksonville Mayor Alvin Brown signed an emergency declaration Sunday that will help speed federal assistance if any is needed to repair damages from the storm that was packing sustained winds of 70 mph with higher gusts of hurricane strength.
“I know this is Memorial Day weekend where we honor those men and women who really paid the ultimate price for our freedom. But again, we’ve got to be smart about this,” Brown said. “This is all about safety.”
Brown warned people to stay out of the water and not drive to check on the impacts of the storm.
Early storm winds damaged windows at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Jacksonville and knocked down trees in Jacksonville and surrounding areas.
A tropical storm warning was in effect from the Volusia County line with Brevard County north to Edisto Beach, S.C.
Water could rise 2 feet to 4 feet above ground level in normally dry coastal areas in Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia if the peak storm surge occurs at high tide, according to the National Hurricane Center. Large waves are expected to accompany the surge.
As the storm reached land, piers in Jacksonville Beach and St. Johns County were closed. The Mathews Bridge in Jacksonville was the first to close, in part because of construction on the span.
Dangerous surf and rip currents will remain throughout the Memorial Day weekend.
One of the earliest victims of Beryl was the Jacksonville Jazz Festival. Sunday performances were canceled, though Jazz Brunch events were not. An evening Gavin DeGraw and Colbie Caillat concert at the St. Augustine Amphitheatre in St. Johns County’s was canceled at the last moment Sunday.
Across the region, today’s scheduled 8 a.m. ceremony at the Veterans Memorial Wall in Jacksonville was canceled, though another observance will be scheduled. Memorial Day events in Orange Park and Green Cove Springs won’t be held today.
During the day Sunday, Beryl moved a little to the south and was off Ponte Vedra Beach in the late evening.
Sustained winds on the leading edge were just below hurricane strength, and a second wave of wind and rain bands will pass after the center of Beryl moves onto land.
Meteorologists expected as much as 8 inches of rain in Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia before the storm moves off to the northeast.
Heavy rains are expected for two or three days, said Steve Letro, the meteorologist in charge of the Jacksonville Weather Service at Jacksonville International Airport. Beryl might go as far west as Lake City before it is pushed to the northeast by an incoming weather system.
As it slows and turns, winds will switch to the southwest, bringing moist air from the Gulf of Mexico. There could be flooding, including in the St. Johns River near the Riverside area, Letro said.
Read more at Jacksonville.com: http://jacksonville.com/news/florida/2012-05-27/story/beryl-bears-down-bringing-strong-rain-and-wind#ixzz1w8UMDEfh
No comments:
Post a Comment