Tag Archives: Florida’s Gulf Coast
Hurricane Helene will make catastrophic Florida landfall; Tallahassee is near direct path
Hurricane Helene’s wide and destructive wind field was moving along the Gulf Coast of Florida southwest of Tampa on Thursday morning and is expected to rapidly intensify on a direct path for the state’s Big Bend region, where it could pose “a nightmare surge scenario for Apalachee Bay,” according to the National Weather Service. The state’s capital, Tallahassee, is just east of the direct path of Helene, which reached Category 2 strength Thursday and is expected to grow into a major Category 3 storm before making landfall late Thursday or early Friday morning. Forecasters said Helene will intensify further than previously forecast, predicting 130 mph winds before landfall. “This forecast, if realized, is a nightmare surge scenario for Apalachee Bay,” the National Weather Service office said. “Please, please, please take any evacuation orders seriously!” Photos, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 14:29
Live updates: Helene strengthening, now forecast to hit Florida as Category 4 hurricane
Helene became a hurricane late Wednesday morning and is rapidly strengthening. The storm is forecast to barrel into Florida’s Gulf Coast as a monster Category 4 hurricane with up to 132-mph winds Thursday, according to the National Hurricane Center. Hurricane Helene is expected to intensify and grow rapidly over the Gulf of Mexico before slamming into Florida’s Gulf Coast. According to AccuWeather forecasters, the highest landfall probability is “somewhere along the eastern part of the Florida Panhandle–perhaps in the Big Bend area–late Thursday evening.” However, an earlier landfall over the Florida Peninsula is possible if Helene tracks farther to the southeast, forecasters said. There is a danger of life-threatening storm surge along the entire west coast of Florida and Florida’s Big Bend, the NHC reported. The highest inundation levels and potentially catastrophic hurricane-force winds are expected along the Big Bend coast. Video, lots of images, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 19:06 Stay safe!
Data shows Florida seafood landings rank below historic trends, Hurricane losses, high diesel prices likely to blame
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, hurricanes and increased fuel costs have reduced the catch of Florida’s seafood industry. Florida’s Gulf Coast is the largest fishery for the state and is still dealing with the effects of Hurricane Ian in late 2022. The storm made landfall at Fort Myers and devastated Florida’s shrimping industry, sinking boats and destroying infrastructure crucial to the industry. According to preliminary data compiled by The Southern Shrimp Alliance from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Fishery Monitoring Branch, Florida’s March 2023 landings off the West Coast were 72.7% below the historical average. In total, 2023 landings for the West Coast are 42.1% below historical trends. >click to read< 10:06
Hurricane Ian remains lingering threat to SWFL’s commercial fishing industry
Florida’s Gulf Coast has experienced many hurricanes, but Ian wasn’t like anything local commercial fishermen had seen before. “I don’t think any of these storms in other places have wiped out all the infrastructure as they did for us,” Streeter says. “In Lee County, we definitely lost three of the deep-water working waterfronts, and on the island, we lost three out of the four fish houses that were executing fisheries. So, we took a major hit. It’s going to be really difficult to get these fisheries back online as they were until we get that infrastructure, until we get docks in and until we get refrigeration.” “We’re in a hard spot right now and we definitely need some help from our governor. We definitely need some congressional federal help for our fisheries.” photos, >click to read< 08:38
20 years after gill net ban, poaching persists along west coast
It was just after midnight Monday when two commercial fisherman saw the blue lights of law enforcement and made a break for it near the mouth of the Manatee River. The water chase was brief, wildlife officers say, because in the end the fisherman got tangled up in their own illegal net. It’s been 20 years since Florida voters, 72 percent of the vote, approved a constitutional amendment banning the use of gill nets within nine miles of Florida’s Gulf Coast and three miles of the Atlantic Coast. The ban was hotly contested and ultimately put out of business about 1,500 commercial fishermen whose livelihood depended on the practice. Read the article here 20:34
