Tropical-force winds started around 10:00 p.m. Wednesday in Sebastian as Hurricane Ian moved across Florida. Many residents in Sebastian, Micco, Fellsmere and Vero Beach are still without power.
Florida Power & Light (FPL) told Sebastian Daily they are working to restore power. There’s no timeline on when electricity will be restored.
Indian River County Sheriff Eric Flowers told Sebastian Daily that if the lights at an intersection are out, treat it like a 4-way stop.
“Be patient with FPL. They are here and triaging all of the power outages. They have crews on the ground. Some power outages were done as protective action and will be put online again as soon as it’s safe. They are working to get your power back on,” Flowers said.
If you have storm-related questions or concerns, please call 772-226-4000, not 911 or the non-emergency line at the sheriff’s office.
“If you see downed lines, don’t mess with them and let us know. It may be a power line that could hurt you. If you choose to operate a generator, please do it in a safe manner, not inside your home and in a well-ventilated area,” Flowers added.
Fortunately for Sebastian, most of the rain and bad weather remained on the north side of the storm. However, we can still expect winds of 25 to 30 mph today with rain.
Hurricane Ian has now been downgraded to a tropical storm, and it is exiting Florida from the Titusville area. Forecasters say they expect Ian to strengthen again in the Atlantic as it moves north.
All bridges and the causeway never closed during the storm. However, county beaches will remain closed today.
