Brevard County officials say prepare for wind, rain and storm surge from Nicole
Brevard County emergency management is urging Space Coast residents to prepare for another strong storm system barely 6 weeks after Hurricane Ian plowed through the state, leaving a trail of destruction and death.
Nicole, currently a subtropical storm in the Atlantic, is making its way towards eastern Florida and is expected to be felt in Brevard County sometime between late on Wednesday and early Thursday.
“Seems like we were just here for Hurricane Ian,” said Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey during the Facebook live briefing for Nicole. “I think my big concern right now is this storm hasn’t gotten a lot of hype, a lot of people haven’t been paying attention to it. We have got so many other things going on.”
Although weaker than Hurricane Ian, which made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane south of Tampa on September 28. Nicole is expected to be a Category One hurricane by the time it reaches Florida.
While not packing anywhere close to Ian's punch, Nicole is still expected to significantly impact the east coast of Florida, with landfall right now predicted to be in the Palm Beach area, though the storm's path is likely to shift over the next 24 hours.
NASA impacted by Nicole: Fate of NASA's Artemis I launch uncertain as Tropical Storm Nicole churns in Atlantic
“Across a good portion of this peninsula, we are looking at winds that can still gust up to tropical storm force as the storm moves through the state and head northward,” said Alan Reppert, a senior meteorologist with AccuWeather.
Most of the damage will happen south of us, but Reppert said the storm surge is expected to be between 3-6 feet from the coastal areas of Central Florida to Georgia. The rainfall is expected to be between 4-8 inches.
“We are looking for a good rainfall from this over a longer period of time,” Reppert said. “We are not looking at extremely heavy rain for a significant time at least.”
Hurricane watch in place: Hurricane watch in place as Subtropical Storm Nicole strengthens, takes aim for Florida
This storm will cause flooding, especially along the coast, but also in low lying areas. In terms of wind, Poe said he is expecting tropical storm force winds for a short period of time. That means about 45 mph winds up to 55 mph to 60 mph.
“We are going to see a lot of coastal erosion,” said John Scott, the county’s emergency management director. “For folks who live at or along the beach, they really need to take this seriously.”
There will be two sandbag distribution locations where people can go if needed. One will be at Wickham Park and the second will be on Camp Road across from the jail.
Both will open at 8am and continue until 6pm on Tuesday only.
“Use this time to get prepared,” Scott said. “Break out that kit that you just probably put away. Restock what you can, and be prepared for some winds, some flooding, those kinds of things as well look forward to what we are going to see with Nicole.”
storm prediction: Subtropical Storm Nicole: See spaghetti models, path and storm activity for Florida
Updates will be provided to the public, including closings and shelters, as the week continues.
The storm is not expected to affect voting, according to Brevard election offcials.
Ralph Chapoco is government and politics watchdog reporter. You can reach Chapoco at rchapoco@floridatoday.com and follow him on Twitter @rchapoco.
Support local journalism. Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Brevard County prepares for Subtropical Storm Nicole arrival
