Ida sweeps across county

Santa Rosa County took a very cautious approach Monday to the arrival of Tropical Storm Ida.

And with good reason.

The major concern with Ida now lies with the rains falling to the north of Santa Rosa County and Florida.

As the National Weather Service lifted the Tropical Storm Warning, a flood warning was establish until Friday, Nov. 13.

Flooding along the Blackwater River and Coldwater Rivers are a possibility as flood models show the Blackwater River was two feet above normal levels by 8 a.m. and the Riverwalk Boardwalk was already six inches under water.

Road closures in the Milton area associated with Monday night’s storm include Andrew Jackson in Floridatown, Municipal Drive and Elmira Street as well as Riverwalk Street at the end of Berryhill Road in Milton.

Standing water was also reported at Ward Basin Road at Brown’s Fish Camp.

One road expected to have water on it was covered by sand Tuesday morning was Highway 399/Gulf Boulevard, which runs between Navarre Beach and Pensacola Beach.

Following two previous storms (Ivan and Dennis) the road was closed for extended periods of time due to extensive damages.

No reports of damage were available by the time the Santa Rosa County Emergency Operations Center was deactivated by 10 a.m. Tuesday.

Monday’s local declaration of emergency by county commissioners at 9 a.m., also established a dual shelter at the Milton Community Center for the general public and special needs individuals.

Overall the center was used by 34 individuals according to the census.

Of the total 18 were general population with three special needs patients and two care givers. The remaining 11 were Red Cross Staff.

Unofficial rain fall estimates indicate Santa Rosa County received two-and-a-half inches of rain by 6 a.m., while the largest amounts in Northwest Florida were recorded by Crestview and Pensacola, as both received in excess of four inches.

Gulf Power reported that less than 5,000 people lost power during the warning and they were expected to be back on line by midnight Tuesday.

Sunday night, the first storm of the Hurricane Season caused some concern to officials as she picked up some steam after passing Cuba and entering the southern portion to the Gulf.

At one point 100 mile per hour winds alerted this might not be your typical storm late Sunday, but by Monday morning officials with the National Weather Service were prepared to downgrade the hurricane to a tropical storm by 9 a.m.

Ida finally made landfall around 8 a.m. near Mobile.

Classes in Santa Rosa County were cancelled on Tuesday and students in the Santa Rosa County School System will have to make up for Tuesday’s day off on Jan. 22.

During the storm warning Santa Rosa County Deputies will be doubling up with all off-duty patrol deputies.

“We will have all patrol officers on duty starting at midnight until the duration of the storm,” Marc Ward, with the Santa Rosa County Sheriffs’ Office said. “We are hoping it will not be that long, but we are prepared for the duration of the storm.”

Also the Santa Rosa County Sheriff  had all individuals on ankle monitors or house arrest to report to the jail, which was around 50 individials.

“This is a precaution we take,” said Ward. “If the power goes out then we cannot monitor them and they are supposed to be monitored in some for or fashion.

“To ensure this we have them report to the jail and lock them up until we can ensure there will not be any power issues.”