Tropical Storm Nicole delivers rain, gusty winds to Sarasota-Manatee in path across Florida
Tropical Storm Nicole packed a limited punch for the Sarasota-Manatee County region, as the unusual late-season system brought rain and gusty winds across a wide swath of Florida Thursday.
Compared to elsewhere in the state, the Sarasota-Manatee area appeared to have had minimal impacts, especially considering next to Hurricane Ian, which made landfall in Southwest Florida and crossed the peninsula in the other direction in late September. Several thousand customers lost electric power from Nicole and various areas had standing water on roads, but no serious damage was reported.
The storm made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane early Thursday but weakened back to a tropical storm with winds in the 60 mph range as it moved across the state.
Previously: Sarasota, Manatee schools closed Thursday as Nicole approaches Florida
The area was impacted by “tropical storm force conditions as kind of expected,” Austen Flannery, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Ruskin, said. “Sarasota Bradenton International Airport for instance, we had a 52 mph wind gust that likely represents the highest wind speeds seen across your area there."
As of a 1 p.m. briefing from the National Weather Service, Sarasota, Charlotte, DeSoto, Highlands and Lee counties were dropped from the tropical storm warning.
The storm remained large, with a wind field 500 miles across from southwest to northeast. The storm was expected to leave behind some gusty winds as it later crossed the Florida Panhandle and into Georgia.
The National Weather Service gauges at Sarasota Bradenton International Airport recorded about 1.1 inches of rain between 7 a.m. and about 11 a.m.
“It’s been windy, it's been rainy and that’s been the main theme with the system,” he added.
“This is obviously not as significant a storm as Hurricane Ian was,” Gov. Ron DeSantis said, before noting that beach erosion is a problem in some area.
Storm surge impacted some structures along the east coast near where Nicole made landfall south of Vero Beach, especially in Volusia County.
The storm also caused flash flooding in some areas, and about 3% power customers in the state were without power, DeSantis said.
“Impacts have been basically what’s been expected,” the governor added.
DeSantis said 17,000 utility line workers were on standby waiting for the storm to pass so they can restore electricity. The state also mobilized 600 National Guardsmen to help with recovery, and 250 crews from the Florida Department of Transportation to inspect and clear roadways and bridges.
“We’re ready and we have resources to respond to whatever post storm needs may arise,” DeSantis said.
The weather service's Flannery said that forecasters expected a chance for 1 to 3 feet of storm surge along the west coast as the system exited, that too is anticipated to be minor and seen in areas that are typically flood prone.
“Away from the water, otherwise, we’ve kind of peaked,” he added. “There’s definitely still some rain bands pushing through. It could still be windy at times but we've likely seen the worst of the wind and the rain.”
The Little Manatee River was still projected to hit minor flood stage, Flannery said but while levels of both the Peace River and Horse Creek are being monitored, neither of those were in danger of approaching flood stage.
The Myakka River was never projected to reach flood stage at Myakka River State Park.
“Thankfully more water didn’t fall in those areas, still reeling from Ian in a lot of ways,” Flannery said.
He added that projected rainfall for the region is no more than the level of a significant afternoon thunderstorm.
Charlotte, Manatee and Sarasota counties lost power because of Nicole
More than 23,400 people in Charlotte, Manatee and Sarasota counties lost power because of Nicole.
Florida Power & Light reported that 5,340 Manatee County customers were without power as of 1 p.m. which accounts for about 2.7% of FPL customers in the county. Another 284 Peace River Electric Cooperative customers were reportedly without power too.
In Sarasota County, Florida Power & Light's outage map reported 7,910 Sarasota County customers without power as of 1 p.m. Thursday.
The outages accounted for about 2.8% of FPL customers in the county.
In Charlotte County, roughly 9,900 Florida Power & Light accounts lost power at some point, with 9,010 restored and 840 without power as of 11 a.m.
Hurricane Ian debris cleanup was suspended in anticipation of the impacts of Nicole, though most municipalities maintained regular trash pickups.
In the city of Bradenton and Manatee County trash pickup schedules were pushed back a day, with Thursday routes serviced Friday and Friday routes serviced Saturday.
Some parks and government offices closed Thursday for Nicole. All will be closed Friday in observance of Veterans Day.
Manatee County impacts
No major flooding was reported in Manatee County, though the storm caused some traffic lights to stop functioning, prompting public safety officials to remind drivers to treat any intersections where traffic signals are not working as a four-way stop.
The Manatee County Area Transit service, Myakka City Community Center and county parks were closed Thursday but will reopen Friday, while Manatee County Public Libraries reopen Saturday.
The Florida Highway Patrol has closed the Sunshine Skyway bridge between Manatee and Pinellas counties due to high winds of about 50 mph Thursday morning with the bridge schedule to remain closed until winds subside to a safe level.
Sarasota County impacts
North Port, which got pummeled by Hurricane Ian, showed some signs of strain from Nicole early Thursday afternoon. Rain pelted tarped roofs and basketball hoops were down, likely in preparation for the storm. Some street signs were still on the ground, perhaps left over from Ian, but Nicole’s winds moved branches on trees like the ones that had fallen over completely during the September storm.
Although the city’s main thoroughfares looked intact, the Country Club Ridge neighborhood near Pine Park was in bad shape. Debris from home damage that happened during Ian sat in front of nearly every house and got soaked as rain continued to fall.
North Port spokesman Jason Bartolone said there had been no storm-related issues reported to the city.
“They were expecting less than two inches of rain within city limits.
Nevertheless, the city opened up a self-serve sandbag station Wednesday and public works employees have been busy cleaning debris from Hurricane Ian out of the 81 miles of canals and waterways.
“We prepare for the worst and hope for the best and hopefully there’s nothing else to worry about with this system,” Bartolone said.
North Port paused its storm debris collection, which is planned to resume after the system passes.
Solid waste pickup will continue as scheduled.
North Port city and other facilities remained open though the George Mullen Activity Center and Morgan Family Community Center will have a delayed opening at noon.
The fitness centers will be open, but all instructor led fitness classes, rentals and programs are canceled.
The North Port Aquatic Center and athletic fields will be closed.
The city of Venice Public Works department closed the walkway along the South Jetty at Humphris Par Thursday morning because of the weather and city fountains have been shut down.
Storm debris pickup paused Wednesday morning and is expected to resume Friday.
Venice trash and recycling pickups will ran as usual on Thursday.
Sarasota County Area Transit services were suspended Thursday but scheduled to resume Friday.
City of Sarasota recreation and cultural arts facilities will be open Friday.
Impacts in Charlotte County
Charlotte County experienced rainfall between 1.5 and 2 inches west of Interstate 75 and 2.5 and 3 inches of rain east of I-75, according to an email from spokesman Brian Gleason.
Maximum sustained winds were reported in the mid-20 mph range with wind gusts up to 35 mph reported at Punta Gorda Airport overnight.
Less than an inch of rainfall was anticipated through Thursday, with winds slowing to the mid-to-high teens, then single digit after dark.
No flooding or road closures were reported.
Tarps installed on roofs in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian largely held up, Gleason noted, with the exception of tarps secured by sandbags.
Charlotte County staff was assessing county facilities Thursday for damage or water intrusion.
The Charlotte County landfill was scheduled to reopen Friday, with waste and recycling will resume Friday for Thursday customers.
Four individuals checked into the Ann and Chuck Dever shelter in Charlotte County overnight.
East Coast impacts after landfall
Nicole had maximum sustained winds of 75 mph just south of Vero Beach at about 3 a.m. Thursday, according to the National Hurricane center.
The storm caused severe beach erosion overnight Wednesday along the Treasure Coast, with flooding, down trees and powerlines.
It caused similar beach erosion in Brevard County to the north, though no major damage was reported at Port Canaveral, according to Florida Today, with officials planning a full inspection once the storm passed.
In Volusia County, officials received reports of a partial collapse of a single-family home on the coast in Daytona Beach Shores, according to the Daytona Beach News Journal.
In Flagler County, wave action from Tropical Storm Nicole eroded sand dunes along the beachfront highway A1A, in front of the Topaz Motel in Flagler Beach, according to the News Journal.
A1A was also blocked by storm surge in the St. Augustine Area, according to the Florida Times-Union, while storm surge was causing flooding along St. Augustine and Jacksonville area beaches.
Herald-Tribune staff writers Zac Anderson, Laura Finaldi, Jesse Mendoza, Anne Snabes and Steven Walker contributed to this report Support local journalism with a digital subscription to the Herald-Tribune.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota and Manatee felt impacts of Nicole as tropical storm strength
