Public Notice: City of Lakeland Hurricane Milton Restoration Update - October 17, 2024

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Lakeland Electric reports that power has been reinstated for customers who can safely receive service. As clean-up efforts continue, hanging tree limbs may impact service and cause isolated outages. Customers with damaged electrical equipment or those dealing with flooding may be unable to safely receive power until the floodwaters recede or their equipment undergoes assessment and repair by a qualified electrician. Once the property owner has made repairs, customers should contact 863-834-9535 to have power safely reconnected.

Lakeland Electric would like to express its deepest gratitude to the over 500 mutual aid personnel from Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, Alabama, Wisconsin, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas, and Florida who assisted in the power restoration effort.

The National Weather Service reported that Hurricane Milton's rainfall was a 1-in-1,000-year event, resulting in unprecedented flooding in the Tampa Bay and Central Florida area. The Lakeland area specifically experienced over 12 inches of rain in 24 hours taxing the City’s stormwater system.  All area lakes are flooded, and it is very difficult to alleviate flood conditions and lower lake levels. Most of the drainage lakes, tributaries and rivers have high levels and that is not helping flood situations because of the higher-than-normal rainfall over the summer.   

Rainfall Total in Inches
Source	Jun-24	Jul-24	Aug-24	Sep-24	Oct-24
Hollingsworth Rain Gauge	11.7	10.6	16.85	12.2	11.3
COL Northside WW Plat	14.06	9.36	10.4	6.47	13.14
NWS	10.63	5.74	10.73	12.54	18.56
Monthly Normal Average (U.S. Climate Data)	7.01	7.52	7.32	6.34	2.28

There are three major watershed basins in the City of Lakeland, and outflows from area lakes flow into either the Hillsborough River or the Peace River. Water flows from higher elevation to lower elevation.  The downstream rivers (Peace and Hillsborough) flow through relatively flat terrain with little elevation changes, which leads to significant regional flooding after major storm events.  The Peace and Hillsborough Rivers have been in flood stage since the passing of Tropical Storm Debby, and Hurricanes Helene and Milton have fully exacerbated the flooding situation.  This makes it very difficult to drain flooded upstream waters. 

The largest surface water drainage system is Lake Parker. Lakes at higher elevation that flow into Lake Parker include Lake Gibson (via Lake Crago) and Lake Mirror.  Lake Bonny is at a relatively equal elevation to Lake Parker. The City has been pushing water from Lake Bonny to Lake Parker with a very high-volume pump at 5,000 gallons per minute since August 5, 2024.   The water from Lake Parker eventually flows to the Peace River via Lake Hancock but both those water bodies are also at flood level. Flooding occurred throughout the City and Polk County and the drainage continues to impact the Lake Parker/Bonny watersheds with water slowly draining into the lakes. Even though a high-volume pump is removing water from Lake Bonny, the urbanized drainage basin continues to input water to the lake.  Water naturally is seeping from higher elevation into the drainage basin. Lake Bonny in its natural state is approximately 400 million gallons.

For those still experiencing flooding situations, a self-serve sandbag site has been mobilized at 315 North Eastside Drive.  The site is open from 8 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.  Sandbags are available on a 1^st come; 1^st served basis as long as supplies last.

Residential Garbage Collection resumed normal operations on Monday, October 14, 2024. This includes garbage, recycling, and yard waste.  Expect delays in bagged and containerized yard waste collection. Place any extra bags of garbage next to the green garbage cart and it will be picked up. 

City of Lakeland crews estimate there are between 200,000 and 250,000 cubic yards of tree and vegetative debris that will need to be removed from Lakeland area streets. Hurricane debris including large yard waste piles and household items will be collected street by street by FEMA Contractors and city claw trucks. There is need to call in large piles of tree or household debris. 

The City’s contract debris haulers are mobilized, and Lakeland residents will see FEMA debris haulers on the street. Additional haulers will continue to be added as they receive FEMA certification.  Keep debris away from trees, poles, structures, fire hydrants, and meters. Do not block the roadway with debris. Curbside debris needs to be separated into these categories:

• Construction debris
• Vegetation debris
• Appliances

A debris hotline has been established. Staff will be able to let the caller know where debris haulers are currently working and explain the debris removal process.  The hotline is live 863-834-TREE (8733).

The City’s stormwater system and sanitary sewer system has been taxed heavily. The City of Lakeland asks residents to reduce the use of water - only use toilets, laundry, and other water, as absolutely necessary.  All used water going down the drain impacts the wastewater process in moving water through the system. Be careful when approaching standing water. Do so with extreme caution because not all water is stormwater. Refrain from recreational contact in and around water bodies. Many of these systems have been adversely impacted by Hurricane Milton with high water levels, potential contamination, and submerged structures. 

Hurricane Milton caused several water main breaks, and the City’s Water Department continues to work on the water system. There is a list of boil water notices in place.  Go to lakelandgov.net/boilwaternotices for the latest updates. 

Milton made landfall as a Category Three Hurricane and was a Category Two as it travelled over Polk County.  Many in the community were impacted.  Both state and federal government have resources available to help those that received damage from Hurricane Milton. It’s important to register for both.

Register for State Assistance at Activate Hope:

www.hopeflorida.com

Register for Federal Disaster Assistance:
www.disasterassistance.gov

or call 1-800-621-3362.

Residents that may need help with debris cleanup can call Crisis Cleanup: 844-965-1386. Volunteers may be able to assist with: fallen trees, drywall, flooring & appliance removal, tarping roofs, and mold mitigation.

The Florida Division of Emergency Management has announced the opening of Operation Blue Roof. Eligible Polk County residents can apply for this no-cost service through November 5, 2024 by visiting blueroof.gov, calling 888-ROOF-BLU (888-766-3258), or visiting a Right of Entry (ROE) collection.

The Florida Department of Financial Services, Division of Consumer Services is hosting an insurance village at the RP Funding Center that is open 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.  The village serves as an opportunity for policyholders to meet with their insurance carriers in person and work together to file insurance claims. Policyholders should bring as much documentation as they can, including:

• A driver’s license or other form of identification (Passport/State issued ID)
• Insurance cards and insurance policy information/documentation
• Pictures or documentation of the property
• Repair estimates
• Any additional insurance-related information that is readily accessible

NOTE: Due to space limitations, the insurance village will exclusively focus on insurance related issues. Staff from other agencies will not be present to assist with other post-storm benefits. For more information visit www.FloridaDisaster.org.  

Thank you to all those helping put the community back together. Please visit lakelandgov.net/hurricane for additional information regarding restoration and notices.

 

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