Update No. 6 (8 a.m. Friday Sept. 27)
Good morning, AB. With Helene mercifully behind us and the weekend ahead, we are grateful to report that the City is not aware of any storm-related injuries. We extend our heartfelt thanks to our City of Atlantic Beach police, public works, public utilities and information technology professionals; Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and Jacksonville Fire and Rescue personnel; JEA, and other first-responders.
Here are our key messages thus far today:
Stay away from downed trees. They are extremely dangerous, especially when they're in contact with power lines. Always keep a safe distance and report any downed trees and power lines. To report a downed tree, email info@coab.us or call (904) 247-5804. Remember: Assume all downed power lines are live.
JEA outages. A large number of Atlantic Beach residents have power outages today. Electrical outages and service issues can be reported to JEA at (904) 665-6000 or online at JEA.com. Sign up for outage alerts at www.jea.com/alerts. Here is the outage map: www.jea.com/outage_center/outage_map/
Howell Park and Dutton Island Preserve are closed. Please keep out.
City Hall is open. Adele Grage Cultural Center, where our recreation office is located, is closed.
Stay out of the ocean. Conditions remain dangerous for swimmers and boaters, and there is floating debris in the water from the storms. Even standing in knee-deep water can be dangerous. Lifeguards aren’t on duty. Keep out!
Please drive very cautiously. Some debris remains on the streets, and we expect ground saturation to continue to result in falling trees.
Garbage collection. City of Atlantic Beach residential garbage, recycling, and yard debris will be collected today, as scheduled. We do not expect our contractor to complete recycling collection today. If your recycling service is missed today, please leave your bin out for collection tomorrow. Missed service? Email info@coab.us or call (904) 247-5834.
Stay informed. The City of Atlantic Beach posts emergency-management updates at www.coab.us/Helene and www.facebook.com/CityOfAtlanticbeach) before posting/publishing on other platforms, including:
Cleaning up after the storm. Please keep these very important guidelines in mind:
- Be particularly mindful of safety when clearing trees and yard debris.
- Contractors that you hire to do work, such as tree-cutting and fence work, are responsible for debris removal.
- Don’t bag your yard/storm debris. Please bag your leaves.
- Cut limbs and trees so that they are no longer than 5 feet in length, 6 inches or less in diameter, and weigh less than 40 pounds.
- Place your debris near the street, but not on the street. Don’t place debris over water/gas meters, cable/phone boxes, under low-hanging tree limbs, under utility wires, or near mailboxes.
- Don’t put full sandbags with your trash; they will not be picked up.
- Please be mindful that it may take the City more than a week to remove the excessive amount of debris from Helene.
- Removing or trimming trees? We love trees in Atlantic Beach. If you are considering removing a tree, please visit www.coab.us/trees to determine whether a permit and mitigation are needed. Email trees@coab.us with questions. Make sure a qualified line-clearance arborist treats big trees, especially if they are near electrical wires. Major pruning to alter the tree’s structure should not be done at this time. Trees use energy stored in the wood to recover from damage and produce new growth, so the least amount of live wood possible should be removed. Info: https://hort.ifas.ufl.edu/treesandhurricanes.
- Know your contractor. Disasters bring out the best in people and the worst in people. Please be wary of who you are doing business with. We strongly recommend that you vet and do business with a licensed contractor.