Islander Staff Report
Debby drenched Anna Maria Island Aug. 4-5, filling roadways with water and scattering tree limbs and other debris.
Debby was a tropical storm when it moved past the island — 130 miles west at its closest about 5 p.m. Aug. 4.
The storm made landfall as a category 1 hurricane near Steinhatchee in the Big Bend at about 7 a.m. Aug. 5.
On and around AMI, the storm’s impact was felt much of Aug. 4 and well into Aug. 5, as rain, wind, thunderclaps, lightning, tornado warnings, utility outages and flash flood alerts continued through that morning.
Island municipalities, as well as Manatee County and the state, had issued emergency declarations ahead of Debby, actions needed to respond and recover from a storm’s impact.
About 9 a.m. Aug. 5, Manatee County reported “widespread flooding” associated with Debby, which delivered 12-14 inches of rain over 24 hours.
“We are urging everyone to stay off the roads unless travel is absolutely necessary,” county public safety director Jodie Fiske said Aug. 5 in a news release. “We do not need disaster tourists.”
Island officials also sought to discourage “disaster tourists.”
The city of Anna Maria, for example, issued a notice Aug. 4 that the city was closed and extended the closure Aug. 5, limiting access to “residents, renters and workers.”
Mayor Dan Murphy, via text, said the city was working to mitigate extensive flood damage but water was so deep in some areas it unknown how many buildings took on water.
In Holmes Beach, the police department asked people to stay off roads Aug. 4 and to go slow if they needed to travel. The city also encouraged people to limit flushing toilets, as several lift stations were not operating due to flooding.
Police Chief Bill Tokajer said Aug. 5 there were minor power outages that had been fixed and some areas experienced flooding.
Holmes Beach city hall was closed Aug. 5, as was Anna Maria’s, which was without electricity, along with buildings on Pine Avenue.
In Bradenton Beach, Islander calls to city hall and Mayor John Chappie were not answered as of press time.
Meanwhile, some businesses that closed ahead of the storm were in operation Aug. 5 others took another storm day.
As for the piers, the Anna Maria City Pier was closed Aug. 5 but the city planned to reopen the attraction Aug. 6 “if conditions are safe.” The Rod & Reel Pier, which is privately owned, was closed Aug. 5 while in Bradenton Beach, the Anna Maria Oyster Bar at the Historic Bridge Street Pier was open Aug. 5.
On the beaches, surveys for erosion were not completed as of press time and Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring had not reported an assessment of nests. However, observations indicated sand was lost and nests were washed over.
Lisa Neff and Ryan Paice contributed to this report.