Signs bring storm surge front and center

Just where will storm surge affect during a major hurricane and how high can it get? Pinellas County residents can get the answer to these questions simply by driving past certain Pinellas County schools. A series of storm surge awareness signs has been installed at 38 locations around Pinellas County schools and school-related facilities, showing not only that the areas are vulnerable to this deadly effect of hurricanes, but how much surge the areas could see in a major hurricane. These locations include: Bay Vista Fundamental School, 5900 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. St. S., St. Petersburg Bayside High School, 14405 49th St. N., Clearwater Belcher Elementary School, 1156 Lakeview Road, Clearwater Clearwater Intermediate School, 1220 Palmetto St. Clearwater Cross Bayou Elementary School, 6886 102nd Ave. N, Pinellas Park Cypress Wood Elementary School, 4900 Cypress Woods Blvd., Palm Harbor East Lake High School, 1300 Silver Eagle Drive, Tarpon Springs Forest Lakes Elementary School, 301 Pine Ave. N, Oldsmar Frontier Elementary School, 6995 Hopedale Lane, Clearwater Fuguitt Elementary School, 13010 101st St., Largo Gus Stavros Center, 12200 Starkey Road, Largo Lakewood Elementary School, 4151 Sixth St. S, St. Petersburg Lakewood High School, 1400 54th Ave. S., St. Petersburg Lynch Elementary School, 1901 71st Ave. N, St. Petersburg Madeira Beach Fundamental School, 591 Tom Stuart Causeway, Madeira Beach Marjorie Rawlings Elementary School, 6505 68th St. N, Pinellas Park Meadowlawn Middle School, 6050 16th St. N., St. Petersburg Nina Harris ESE School, 6000 70th Ave. N., Pinellas Park North Shore Elementary School, 200 35th Ave. N.E., St. Petersburg Oldsmar Elementary School, 302 W Dartmouth Ave., Oldsmar Osceola High School, 9751 98th St. N., Seminole Osceola Middle School, 9301 98th St. N., Seminole Ozona Elementary School, 601 Tampa Road, Palm Harbor Pinellas Park Elementary School, 7520 52nd St. N., Pinellas Park Pinellas Park Middle School, 6940 70th Ave. N., Pinellas Park Pinellas Secondary School, 8570 66th St. N., Pinellas Park PTEC North, 6100 154th Ave. N., Clearwater Safety Harbor Elementary School, 535 Fifth Ave. N., Safety Harbor San Jose Elementary School, 1670 San Helen Drive, Dunedin Sawgrass Elementary School, 1815 77th Ave. N., St. Petersburg Shore Acres Elementary School, 1800 62nd Ave. N.E., St. Petersburg Skyview Elementary School, 8601 60th St. N., Pinellas Park Starkey Elementary School, 9300 86th Ave., Seminole Sunset Hills Elementary School, 1347 Gulf Road, Tarpon Springs Tarpon Springs Elementary School, 555 E. Pine St., Tarpon Springs Tarpon Springs Fundamental Schools, 400 E Harrison St., Tarpon Springs Tarpon Springs High School, 1411 S Gulf Road, Tarpon Springs Walsingham /Southern Oaks Elementary Schools, 9101 Walsingham Road, Largo

This project, the result of an 18-month grant program, was rolled out to coincide with the release of the National Hurricane Center’s experimental storm surge product, first used last week in North Carolina during the approach of Hurricane Arthur.

Work is nearly complete on a storm surge illustration application to show residents what storm surge will look like at their address during different evacuation levels.

For more information on hurricane preparedness, call Pinellas County Emergency Management at (727) 464-3800.