The current path of Hurricane Ian has the storm making landfall somewhere between Pinellas and Sarasota Counties tomorrow evening. This morning Polk County was put under a Hurricane Watch meaning that inland areas could experience hurricane-force winds starting tomorrow. All non-essential operations and facilities at the City of Lakeland will be closed Wednesday and Thursday. We will assess the situation and plan for Friday based on the aftermath of Hurricane Ian. For now, we are planning on City facilities re-opening Friday, September 30th. Please find attached a Declaration for a Local State of Emergency signed by Mayor Pro-Tem Sara McCarley. The declaration provides the City Manager powers of authority to assist in hurricane preparation and restoration efforts for the organization.
Polk County Government offices and Polk County Schools are also closed. As a reminder, the closure includes City Parks, Recreation Centers, and the City Libraries. The safety of our employees and the citizens using our facilities has always been paramount to our operation. Solid Waste collection has also been suspended because the Polk County Landfill is closed until further notice.
Public safety operations, utility services and those employees deemed to be essential to emergency operations and restoration (following the storm) will continue to administer these necessary operations and prepare for specific restoration deployments as the storm passes and their notice to execute their Emergency/Storm Watch declarations has already commence. The Polk County EOC has moved to a Level 1 Full Activation will maintain the 24-hour operations until further notice.
As we prepare for the Hurricane Ian, please be diligent in your preparations and most of all take care of one another and stay safe.