Hurricane Ian Update #4

Press release from City of Gainesville

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Hurricane Ian has intensified to a Category 4 storm as it approaches the Southwest Florida Gulf coast. Our area remains in a Tropical Storm Watch and a Flood Watch and expects up to two inches of rain today with tropical storm force winds up to 39 mph as rain bands rotate northward.  

Emergency shelters are open. Details including which items to bring to a shelter can be found here.

  • Special needs (service animals only): Senior Recreation Center, 5701 NW 34th Blvd.
  • Pet-friendly: Easton Newberry Archery Center, 24880 N.W. 16th Ave, Newberry; and Eastside High School, 1201 S.E. 43rd Street
  • General population (not pet-friendly): Meadowbrook Elementary School (no pets)

GRU.com/StormCentral. Find important information before, during and after the storm, including phone numbers to report downed power lines, service emergencies and a link to the GRU outage map with estimated time of restoration.

Bus service: The City’s Regional Transit System will stop service at 9 p.m. tonight and may resume Friday depending on conditions. Additional information is available on the GNVrideRTS app (rideRTS.app), on the RTS Facebook page or the RTS website, www.go-rts.com.

Refuse Collection: Residential trash collection has been suspended tomorrow Thursday, Sept. 29, and may be collected Saturday; otherwise, it will be picked up next week as regularly scheduled.

Sandbag operations:

  • Pre-made sandbags expect to be available until noon at the Public Works administration building, 405 NW 39th Avenue, or while supplies last. To best manage traffic to the Public Works facility, City officials ask neighbors to adjust their routes and drive north on NW 6th Street, turning right (east) on NW 39th Ave.
  • Sand and bags for filling are available until 4 p.m. at Citizens Field, 1000 NE Waldo Rd. Access the site from NE 12th Avenue via Waldo Road, or travel south on NE 15th Street via NE 16th Avenue.
  • For information about sandbags outside Gainesville city limits, contact your local municipality or visit the Alachua County website.

Parking Facilities: Free parking for those who need to store their vehicles is available at the SW Parking Garage, 105 SW 3rd St., through Friday, Sept. 30.

Closed: City of Gainesville offices and facilities, and Gainesville Regional Utilities’ lobby and drive-thru.

These emergency management updates are available online at www.safeGNV.org.

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