Storm surge and related flooding prove to be the biggest local impact of Hurricane Idalia

Well after Hurricane Idalia had passed west of the Sarasota-Manatee County coastline Wednesday, water continued to flow over seawalls, onto streets and into yards as the storm's greats impact here – sea water pushed by the hurricanes winds, combined with extra high tide – were being felt well into the day.

Local officials were just beginning to assess the impacts Wednesday, but overall, damage appeared to be limited and somewhat less than predicted, with much worse damage to the north in Florida, where it made landfall just under Category 4 strength.

Nevertheless, life began quickly returning to normal, with businesses, including grocery stores welcoming customers, garbage collections resuming Wednesday for many and Sarasota County Schools announcing they would be reopening Thursday. Manatee County had not decided by the Herald-Tribune's publication time when it was reopening.

Sarasota schools used as shelters closed Wednesday and were being cleaned in preparation for school re-opening on Thursday. Bell schedules and bus routes will be normal, but the district said to expect transportation delays due to possible flooding.

The Level A evacuation order had not been lifted, even though the evacuation centers had been closed.

County officials urged residents who cannot  return home because of flooding or damage to stay in a safe place – including with family and friends if possible.

Power outages appeared to be limited, with fewer than 10,000 FPL customers still without electricity in Sarasota and Manatee counties by mid-morning.

Many government offices and operations across the two-county area were also resuming.

The fastest wind gust recorded in Sarasota County was 70 mph at Sarasota Bradenton International Airport, when Idalia paralleled the shore about 100 miles west of the coast, according to Ali Davis, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Ruskin.

Generally the impact Hurricane Idalia had on Sarasota and Manatee counties played out along the lines forecasters anticipated for the evolving system, Davis said, with storm surge being the main issue and coastal locations really seeing the worst impacts.

Forecasters anticipated most of Sarasota County's coast to experience a storm surge of  3 to 5 feet, with Manatee County and the northern portion of Longboat Key grouped in with the Tampa Bay region and a forecast of 4 to 7 feet.

Tides were amplified by the moon's closer proximity to Earth.

Idalia brought more storm surge than most storm's that have passed off the coast in recent years.

“Some people that haven't seen storm surge flooding before are seeing storm surge flooding,” Davis said.

Area rainfall estimates have been on the lower end of the of the initial projections, at 3 to 4 inches, with pockets of rain at 5 inches or more, including in the city of Sarasota. Charlotte and DeSoto counties have experienced higher rainfall totals, Davis said.

Bridges over the Peace River between Punta Gorda and Port Charlotte were closed Wednesday morning because of flooding, the Sunshine Skyway was closed because of winds between 50 and 60 mph and bridges to the barrier islands were also closed because of early flooding.

Some locations may experience another inch to inch-and-a-half of rain, as Idalia moves north and rain bands cycle through the area, she added.

Sarasota County officials expressed concern that residents were walking through flooded areas prior to high tide.

“We’re seeing a lot of videos … where people are out in the water right now and the water is going to rise,” Sarasota County spokeswoman Jamie Carson said Wednesday morning. “We’re asking our community members to please stay safe, please be smart.”

Sarasota County public works crews are still assessing infrastructure damage. Carson noted that some roads are not passable, while there has been significant damage to some roadways.

Storm surge impacted two roads that run along the beach – Manasota Key Road north of Blind Pass Road and Casey Key Road north of Blackburn Point Road.

A county text alert later noted that the road north of Blind Pass/Middle Beach was washed out and traffic cannot pass in either direction.

Carson later added that Sarasota County planned to reopen normal operations Thursday morning, pending the ongoing Wednesday assessment of facilities.

“We’re assessing all of our areas today so we ask the community to understand that there might be some interruptions to individual facilities and services and to continue to follow the county’s web sites and social media, our local media partners and to call 311 for the most updated information.”

In addition to flooded roads, county officials must still survey impacts to area beaches.

“We just had that beach repair at south Turtle Beach and that’s got to be taken a look at and assessed to see the status of that,” Carson added. “Our parks, recreation natural resources team is out there checking on their facilities and making those determinations of what can open and what programs and services can resume on Thursday.

“Same thing for our library and historical resources – we know the community is eager to resume normal operations, we are planning to do so on Thursday but we continue with those assessments.”

Public Utilities staff is in the process of restoring water service to the southern area of Casey Key. Restoring service to the northern area will take additional time due to flooding. Community members have been updated.

More than 300 people took shelter in Sarasota County evacuation centers.

All those centers were closed by noon Wednesday.

Impacts in Venice

The roof of Troll Music, 628 E. Venice Ave was heavily damaged by winds associated with Hurricane Idalia. While city official were still conducting a “windshield assessment” of other structures in the city, that appears to be the most damaged structure in the city, Venice spokeswoman Lorraine Anderson said.

The T-hangars at Venice Municipal Airport – many of which were damaged last year by Hurricane Ian – appear to be unscathed.

Anderson and Venice Police Chief Charles Thorpe checked on the Venice Theatre and a security guard there told them there had been no damage from Idalia.

Several streets in Venice saw flooding including Tarpon Center Drive at The Esplanade; Venice Avenue at The Esplanade; Everglades Drive; Flamingo Drive; Villa Drive; Golden Beach Boulevard and Gardena Drive.

Tarpon Center Drive was closed Wednesday to non-resident traffic just before the Crow’s Nest.

Trash, recycling and yard waste services for the city were to resume Thursday, Aug. 31.

Thursday collections will occur as usual.

Missed collections will occur on customers’ next scheduled pickup day.

There will be no collections on Sept. 4 due to the Labor Day holiday..

Venice City Hall, the Venice Museum, bill pay/service areas at Venice Public Works and Utilities, Venice Police Department lobby, Venice Fishing Pier, Humphris Park/South Jetty, and the Children’s Fountain in Centennial Park remained closed Wednesday.

Venice Municipal Airport was to reopen Thursday.

North Port impacts

Hurricane Idalia impacts in the city of North Port were minimal.

City crews checked typical problem areas Wednesday morning and roadways have been clear from flooding and debris.

City officials are continuing to monitor tides and water levels but there is currently capacity in the flood control system.

The city's fire rescue team aided to the Town of Longboat Key with flooding.

North Port residents with questions can call Public Works at 941-240-8050.

North Port City Hall and other city offices are scheduled to reopen Thursday.

Manatee County impacts

Manatee county communities, experienced flooding, including Anna Maria Island.

Emergency crews have responded to the low-lying Rubonia community in Manatee County, where many homes have been flooded by Hurricane Idalia.

Although the storm has passed, floodwaters continued to be a problem for residents in the community Wednesday.

Bradenton resident Hollace Bostic said he has been helping his family, and stood on the side of the road on Wednesday watching the water lap over the door of his mother's blue house.

"There's water in there," he said. "Rubonia didn't flood like this until they started plugging up some of the drainage overflows that used to run across 41 over there. Then Rubonia really started to flood. Then if you ride from here up, you notice there is no flooding anywhere other than here."

Manatee County Chairman Kevin Van Ostenbridge said the county recently completed about $6.5 million worth of stormwater drainage improvements over the past two years in the community. He said although the project has been effective, it was not intended to handle issues such as Idalia's storm surge.

"There is a difference between rainwater and storm surge, and today we are dealing with storm surge," Van Ostenbridge said. "Terra Ceia Bay is across the street, and there is a bayou directly adjacent to Rubonia, and the water level in the bayou and the water level in the bay is the same level we're seeing on the streets."

Charlotte County impacts

Both U.S. 41 bridges  over the Peace River in Charlotte County were closed because of road flooding in Punta Gorda.

Storm surge, high tides and excessive rainfall from Hurricane Idalia have caused widespread localized flooding.

The Beach Road causeway leading to Manasota Key was also closed Wednesday until further notice.

For Tropical Storm Idalia information in Charlotte County, call the Emergency Operations Center at 941-833-4000.

This story includes reporting from Staff Writers Steven Walker, Derek Gilliam, Jesse Mendoza, Gabriela Szymanowska and Melissa Perez-Carrillo.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Idalia brings storm surge, road flooding to Sarasota-Manatee coast