Hurricane Irma has left Southwest Florida, but not without leaving the public with much work to do. As of the morning of Sept. 12, according to the Cape Coral Police Department, there is reported flooding along Burnt Store Road. Traffic is being detoured to Old Burnt Store Road between Gulfstream and Durden.

The police department reported on Monday night that there is no citywide boil water notice for Cape Coral. The department also announced official recovery efforts to begin, keeping public safety top of mind.

"...while we missed the worst of it and were spared what could have been a catastrophic loss of life and property, we as a community have a lot of work to do before things get back to normal," said a message from the city of Cape Coral Unified Command.

In addition to ensuring safety for the public and first responders, the city is conducting an initial damage assessment, clearing debris from major roads, then local roads, and restoring power to critical facilities and essential services, then to as many homes as possible.

"Our goal is for the City to transition to regular business no later than Monday, September 18," the notice said.

Additional Information

Until the city is back to normal functions, members of the community are encouraged to abide by the below information, courtesy of the city of Cape Coral's website.

Curfew

A county-wide curfew (Cape Coral included) is still in effect from 8 p.m. - 7 a.m., until further notice. The curfew is meant to protect you from dangers that may not be evident during the daylight.

Trash Collection

Waste Pro trash collection will begin tomorrow. If your regularly scheduled collection day is Tuesday, you can put your trash bin out for pick up. They will ONLY be collecting trash. Do not put out horticulture or recycling for collection. They are still short-staffed as they wait for their employees who evacuated to return. They will do their best to make the entire route tomorrow, but if they don’t, please bring your bin back up, off the curb. An update on collection for the rest of the week will be provided tomorrow.

Post-storm Information

Don't return to your neighborhoods immediately after the storm. There will be many dangers that first responders, public works, and debris management workers will have to assess and clear.  We understand the urge to rush back and check the damage to your homes, but please have patience. Damage assessment and repair has already begun, and we will keep you updated on the safety and status of our roadways and bridges.

There will be standing water. Don't play in it. This water can contain sewage, human waste, yard chemicals, dead animals, sharp debris from the storm.

Follow generator safety. Run your generator outside, away from windows, not under an overhang or in the garage where deadly fumes can reach you. Don't refuel a hot generator (gas can ignite) and don't operate a generator in wet conditions to avoid electrocution.

If you've lost power and have no air conditioning, stay hydrated.

Roads

Debris crews are actively clearing roadways. Give yourself extra time as your "usual" route may be blocked.

Don't drive through standing water, as even only a small amount can sweep your car away. Initial reports have flooding much better than had been anticipated, but there's still a lot of water out there.

Generators are being placed at some key intersections throughout the city to power traffic lights. Other intersections are being modified to not allow for left-turns. If there is no signal or officer at the intersection and the light is out, please treat the intersection as a four-way stotp.

Midpoint Bridge and Cape Coral Bridge are cleared for traffic.

Power

About half of the city remains without power, including traffic signals.

Treat all downed power lines as live. Call these in to LCEC at 239-656-2300. Please only call 911 to report a downed power line if it is threatening life safety.

Welfare Checks
Call 239-573-3000 for welfare check requests. Be aware that it may take 24-48 hours for these requests to be completed.

Cancellations and Closures

Today’s special and regular city council meetings have been canceled.

City Hall is closed. It will reopen for regular business on Wednesday, Sept. 13.

Lee County and Cape Coral Municipal Charter Schools are closed through the week. Classes will resume on Monday, Sept. 18.

The Primary Election scheduled for today has been canceled. Early Voting has been rescheduled to Sept. 21-23, and the Primary Election has been rescheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 26.

The Chief Judge of the 20th Circuit has extended the closure of all courthouses through Friday, Sept. 15. The courthouses are expected to reopen on Monday, Sept. 18, subject to a further assessment of damages. This includes Lee County, Collier County, Charlotte County, Hendry County, and Glades counties.

Lee County government offices are closed today and tomorrow.

Shelters

Shelters were scheduled to close their doors Monday night, and decisions about how long the shelters will remain open will be made in tandem with Emergency Management recovery efforts this week. More information to come.


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