Red tide comes and goes, but Anna Maria Island hangs on
The symptoms of red tide seem to have once again subsided on Manatee County’s coastline.
On Thursday, the water was blue and the wind blew pure on Bradenton Beach.
The occasional dead fish glistened in the sunset sands, but all in all it was a scenic evening worthy of a Florida postcard.
There was almost no one there to enjoy it, though.
On a deserted tourist thoroughfare, a charter boat captain painted a restaurant to fill the recent gap in his income.
Empty gift shops beckoned with doors swung wide.
A valet parking attendant sat idle at his post with headphones on.
This time of year is usually slow for the coastal tourism industry, but red tide is making it extra difficult.
Red tide’s unpredictable appearances on Manatee and Sarasota beaches and the headlines that follow are causing locals and tourists to shy away, according to business owners.
Employees of the Bridge Tender Inn in on Bridge Street say spotty news coverage is a big part of the problem.
Behind the restaurant’s empty bar, Denise Hendricks said that travelers who decide to come to Bradenton Beach despite negative headlines are pleasantly surprised.
“Since it’s started, we’ve only had one bad weekend of smell,” Hendricks said. “But with all the negative publicity it’s gone downhill. Once people are here it’s not as bad as what they thought it would be.”
When the wind does bring the scent of red tide, they burn hickory wood on the porch to ward it off.
On Holmes Beach, a senior couple from Virginia was making the best of a planned vacation by beach-hopping to find the spots with the most pleasant conditions.
Thursday night found them at the Anna Maria Island Beach Cafe.
The cafe is closing early three nights a week to bridge the gap in business. Live music gets canceled on slow nights.
“I went from working 40 to 45 hours a week to 50 hours in two weeks,” said bar manager Jason Benn.
Benn has lived on the island for more than 11 years and says this batch of red tide is stronger and longer-lasting than any he remembers.
Benn sees both sides of the news coverage issue.
“You don’t want to say it’s great out here when it’s not. Then they will never come back again,” Benn said.
Conditions on Holmes Beach seem to be improving over the last days and weeks, but that could all change with the wind.
In the meantime, the cafe is running daily specials to attract visitors.
Erin McCarthy lives in the fishing village of Cortez and works on Anna Maria Island. McCarthy is taking it as a good sign that water clarity is improving and schools of sheepshead and snook have been spotted.
“It’s significantly better,” McCarthy said. “Locals are coming back out again and willing to get on the water.”
Whether red tide stays or goes, McCarthy says the community will pull through like it always does. McCarthy remembers how the beach towns came together after Hurricane Irma last year, and they have done the same throughout the red tide crisis.
“The clean up was primarily organized by people in this community,” McCarthy said. “They have carried the bulk of the weight. You see it a lot here.”
On Thursday night, a storm rolled over Anna Maria Island, perhaps carrying the right mix of wind and water to push red tide farther out to sea.
This story was originally published September 21, 2018 at 7:42 AM.