With 100K Manatee residents still without power after Ian, officials ask for patience
With more than 100,000 Manatee County homes without power, local officials are asking residents to remain patient as the Hurricane Ian disaster response continues.
In a Friday morning press conference, Manatee County Government leaders reminded residents that electricity companies are working as quickly as possible to restore power, but it could take longer than usual while resources are focused on devastated areas.
“I don’t have electricity in my house, so I would like to see power back, as well, but we need to remember that a lot of workers are going down south,” said County Commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge.
Hurricane Ian made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane earlier this week, causing widespread devastation in Lee and Collier counties. While Florida Power & Light prepared for the storm by staffing workers in Arcadia, many of them are headed south where the damage was greatest.
Speaking with the Bradenton Herald, Van Ostenbridge noted that critical infrastructure, such as hospitals and 911 call centers, remains offline where the storm made landfall. In a statement, FPL said it is prioritizing recovery in those areas.
“Today is the first full day of restoration after Hurricane Ian exited Florida,” FPL posted in a tweet Friday morning. “More than 50% of customers have already been restored. We continue to work around the clock and are committed to restoring power safely and as quickly as possible.”
FPL has already begun restoring power in Manatee. More than 135,000 homes were without power after the storm, but the number has already dropped down to 80,000, as of Friday afternoon.
Power restoration is also underway for Peace River Electric Cooperative customers. As of Friday afternoon, nearly 25,000 homes remained without power. That’s down from the height of the storm when more than 34,000 customers were without power, according to Peace River’s outage maps.
Speaking during the press conference, Commissioner Reggie Bellamy urged residents to remain calm while power companies continue restoring the power grid.
“We all are very concerned about the lack of power,” Bellamy said. “I know a few commissioners and countless residents that we’ve heard from that do not have power, but please understand that we rely on FPL and Peace River just as you all do.”
“We ask for your patience with that, considering the things going on down south,” he continued.
What about internet service?
Most internet customers will see their service restored once power comes back.
A major internet service provider for Manatee County, Spectrum, has “all available technicians working on service restoration and have supplemented that with hundreds of contractor crews so we can make repairs and restore services as quickly as possible to areas affected,” Charter Communications’ Florida director of communications Joe Durkin said in an email. “More specifically, Manatee customers can expect to see Spectrum Internet restored in the wake of Hurricane Ian.”
Durkin wrote in his email response to questions from the Bradenton Herald that most customers see their Spectrum services restored when power is restored to their homes or business or to their network serving them nearby.
“For customers whose issue isn’t power-related, please call us to report that your services are not working,” he said in the email. “We are able to restore Spectrum services within 48 hours of power restoration for the vast majority of customers.”
There also is not an estimated time for Spectrum customers to see their internet restored in Manatee County.
“It’s constantly changing because the vast majority are due to loss of power to the customer or to our network serving them nearby,” Durkin said in an email.
What else to know
▪ Widespread power outages will delay the re-opening of schools through Monday. There are 15 schools still without power, and as long as there are traffic lights and intersections without power, school buses are not allowed to operate, Hopes said.
▪ The county’s new software estimates $10.5 Million in residential damages and $4.4 Million in commercial damages reported so far.
▪ Anyone needing temporary housing should dial the 311 phone number.
▪ Water and wastewater service returned to barrier islands as of Friday morning.
▪ As of 10 a.m. Friday, 205 of the county’s 738 lift stations were offline or without power. Everyone is asked to refrain from unnecessary flushing, long showers or doing laundry until they can get more of these sites up and running. Report any issues to the 311 phone number.
▪ Normal county operations resume Monday, including trash collection.
▪ Rivers are still cresting from heavy rains and the following roads are closed:
- Golf Course Road at Gamble Creek. Use Rye, Ft. Hamer, 301, County Road 675 (Rutland) and 64 (only North/South) as alternate routes.
- Jim Davis Road at Gamble Creek, only accessible from the south via Golf Course Road.
- Upper Manatee River Road west of Rye Road, closed for another two to three days.
- County Road 675 eastbound (near Jim Davis Road) down to one lane.
- Canal Road (16th Avenue E) at 16th Street in Palmetto
City of Bradenton updates
▪ Permit requirements for minor roof repairs are being waived.
▪ Residential garbage will not be picked up until Monday. Recycle sites are closed.
▪ Conserve water and avoid water going down the drain unless necessary.
This story was originally published September 30, 2022 at 1:31 PM.
