HURRICANES

Police, deputies in Martin County Wednesday report little storm damage, so far

Melissa E. Holsman
Treasure Coast Newspapers

As Hurricane Ian's "extremely dangerous eyewall” began moving onshore along Florida's West Coast Wednesday, law enforcement agencies in Martin County had not reported any significant storm or flood damage.

Stuart Police Lt. Mike Gerwan before noon said so far, “everything’s been quiet.”

He said he detected minor flooding during routine patrols Wednesday morning.

“I just drove around the city, there's minor flooding … at Baker Road and U.S. 1, in front of the Racetrack gas station,” he said, “and minor flooding at Kanner Highway and U.S. 1.”

The agency has a high-water vehicle on standby and officers working the midnight shift will begin at noon and stay overnight in case the weather degrades into the evening, Gerwan said.

“Dispatch and road patrol will sleep over. The day shift, when they get off duty at 6 p.m., they will stay overnight,” he. “We've already coordinated efforts with Fire Rescue. So, we have a good plan in place.”

This satellite image provided by NOAA shows Hurricane Ian off Florida's southwest coast Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2022. The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Ian has rapidly intensified off Florida's coast, gaining top winds of 155 mph, just shy of the most devastating Category 5 hurricane status.

Martin County Sheriff William Snyder said so far, there were no reports of significant flooding in the county. Extra deputies have been positioned throughout the county, he said, along with high-water rescue equipment.

“People of Martin County can feel really secure there's ample law enforcement and we’re good,” Snyder said.

A resident at a home on Southeast Fork Drive off Kanner Highway in Stuart, reported that a portion of the roof on his home was ripped off by high winds early Wednesday.  Officials though, have not confirmed that a tornado touched down in the area.

Bobby Chanthavong works to clear debris from his yard after a possible tornado touched down Tuesday night on Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2022, at Fork River Estates in Martin County. Chanthavong has rented the mobile home for five years and said no one was hurt.  With flash flooding up to 5 inches already reported in areas across the Treasure Coast, meteorologists said Wednesday tropical storm force winds will be the greatest threat as Hurricane Ian is expected to linger over Central Florida for 24 to 30 hours on its northeast path across the state.

Authorities in Sewall’s Point and Jupiter Island said as of noon Wednesday, no weather or flooding emergencies had been reported.

TC storm updates: What you need to know Wednesday as Hurricane Ian hits FL

Storm standby: Local sheriffs may dispatch deputies to help out Florida's Gulf Coast

Hurricane Ian: Martin County to expect tropical-storm-force winds 

Jupiter Island Assistant Police Chief Michael Ewing said their public safety agency is operating at normal staffing levels and remain ready to respond as Hurricane Ian makes landfall on Florida’s Gulf Coast.

“At this point, we're experiencing 20 to 30 mph winds but we’re not suffering any damage or any storm-related issues during the water collection and will deal with the flooding as it becomes necessary,” he said.

In Sewall’s Point, Police Chief Tina Ciechanowski said as of Wednesday morning their officers had seen occasional localized flooding, which is their top concern.

“Especially with some of the king tides that we've had lately in Sewall’s Point as to low lying areas to begin with,” she said. “We'll be keeping an eye on that and we have vehicles staged with detour materials and things of that nature if needed, to make sure no one drives into deep water.”

Ciechanowski urged residents to stay off of South Sewall’s Point Drive if rains increase Wednesday and instead use South River Road to avoid getting caught in deep water.

“Don't drive into deep water,” Ciechanowski said, “especially on South Sewall’s Point Road.”

Meanwhile, the town will keep extra officers on duty until the weather improves, she said.

“Our public works employee and our building official and of course, the town manager are all here working and continuing to monitor it. We're … meeting with our town engineer soon because we have some pumps that have been added due to a public works project on South Sewall’s Point Road,” she said. “We're going to be having additional training to make sure everyone on duty, including officers, know how to operate those pumps if necessary.”

Melissa E. Holsman is the legal affairs reporter for TCPalm and Treasure Coast Newspapers, and is writer and co-host of Uncertain Terms, a true crime podcast. Reach her at melissa.holsman@tcpalm.com.