Hurricane Ian: Lake County declares emergency, distributes sandbags

Jeff Weiner, Orlando Sentinel
Updated ·2 min read
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Hurricane Ian: Lake County declares emergency, distributes sandbags

Lake County commissioners declared a local state of emergency on Sunday and the county has announced sandbag distribution this week, as Hurricane Ian continues on a path toward Florida.

Expecting that schools may be needed as shelters, Lake County Schools announced an early release day for Tuesday. Schools will be closed through Friday, LCS spokesperson Sherri Owens said in a statement.

District offices will also be closed Wednesday through Friday, Owens said.

“Officials will continue to monitor the weather, including flooding conditions, and a decision will be announced later regarding football games and other activities scheduled for Friday night,” she said.

Noelda Lopez, spokesperson for the Florida Department of Health in Lake County, said that agency’s offices will be closed Tuesday through Friday.

Lake County plans to open eight emergency shelters for residents on Tuesday starting at 4 p.m., spokesperson Sarah Lux said. All are pet friendly. The first four listed are equipped for people with special needs:

  • Villages Elementary: 695 Rolling Acres Rd., Lady Lake

  • Leesburg Elementary: 2229 South St., Leesburg

  • Umatilla Elementary: 401 Lake St., Umatilla

  • Lost Lake Elementary: 1901 Johns Lake Rd., Clermont

  • Astatula Elementary: 13925 Florida Ave., Astatula

  • Treadway Elementary: 10619 Treadway School Rd., Leesburg

  • Spring Creek Charter: 44440 Spring Creek Rd, Paisley

  • Mascotte Charter: 460 Midway Ave, Mascotte

Starting Monday, the county began deploying incarcerated people to help at its three sandbag locations for residents with disabilities: Fire Station 10 in Astor, the Minneola Athletic Complex and P.E.A.R. Park in Leesburg.

“Inmates will be deployed to help pack and load sandbags for those who are unable to do so themselves,” LCEM’s statement said. “Depending on level of assistance needed, residents with disabilities may experience an extended wait time.”

Sandbags are also available at North Lake Regional Park and the East Lake Sports and Community Complex. The sites are open between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.

There is a limit of 10 bags per household and residents must bring their own tools and fill their own bags.

LCEM said that residents collected more than 3,600 sandbags from the county’s five sites on Sunday alone.

The county also noted that its Citizens Information Line is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Residents needing information can call the CIL at 352-253-9999.