Cortez residents were drying out their homes and patching up their docks after Hurricane Idalia.
Idalia skimmed the west central coast of Florida Aug. 29-30, about 100 miles from shore, bringing strong thunderstorms, winds, rainfall and storm surge to the fishing village on Sarasota Bay.
Some homes in Cortez flooded, including Gigi Ortwein’s home on 124th Street Court West in Cortez.
She spoke with The Islander Aug. 30: “We woke up at about 3:30, as the water was rising. We had about 4-5 inches before it started to recede. We still have about an inch but there’s nowhere for it to go right now until the groundwater goes down outside.”
Capt. Katie Tupin who owns and operates Capt. Katie Scarlett Boat Tours of Cortez, told The Islander Aug. 30 that floodwaters surrounded three residences belonging to her family.
“The water almost flooded into my house and my mom’s, but luckily it didn’t come in,” Tupin said. “My sister across the street had four inches of water throughout her home.”
Tupin said the family spent the better part of Aug. 30 clearing and drying her sister’s residence.
Meanwhile, Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage treasurer Jane von Hahmann told The Islander Aug. 30 that one FISH-owned building flooded.
She said a neighbor to the old Cortez Volunteer Fire Department, 4523 123rd St. Court W., alerted her that their home had water intrusion and there was a good chance the firehouse also flooded.
Von Hahmann said the firehouse was built with cement block and floored with tile so it would be easy to dry. She said she intended to inspect all FISH properties for signs of damage.
Meanwhile, Jay Leverone of the Sarasota Bay Estuary Program inspected the Fish Preserve, 11655 Cortez Road W., for damage or loss to the program’s wetland creation project that is underway.
He told The Islander Aug. 31 that the preserve came through the storm with minimal damage.
“We may need to do some extra digging to ensure proper depths from minor siltation,” Leverone said.
He said he was discussing new completion dates for a preserve project and aiming for mid-October.
Although faced with flooding and repairs, Cortezians expressed a sense of thankfulness that the damage was not worse.
“We are blessed or, as many would say, very lucky,” von Hahmann said.