Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
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Polk County's Disaster Recovery Center (DRC) is open and ready to provide assistance with FEMA applicant services, SBA, Housing, Department of Children and Family, and Hazard Mitigation. Residents applying for disaster assistance caused by Hurricane Ian must have this information available when applying: •Your address with zip code •Condition of your damaged home •Insurance information, if available •Social Security number •Phone number where you can be contacted •Address...
Lake Wales area homeowners and business owners are eligible for Federal disaster relief following a declaration of disaster by President Joe Biden. The Small Business Administration (SBA) is preparing to render federal disaster assistance as quickly as possible to Polk County's small business owners and critical disaster relief to homeowners. Disaster loans up to $200,000 are available to homeowners to repair or replace disaster-damaged or destroyed real estate. Homeowners...
Downed trees, power outages, and significant flooding were the primary impacts of Hurricane Ian locally. No deaths or injuries were reported to local authorities. The storm weakened enough on its trip inland that it had weakened to a Category One hurricane by the time it made its closest approach. A limited number of buildings sustained wind damage, but it was largely limited to screen enclosures, fences, sheds, and mostly minor roof damage. More than 21 inches of rain was rec...
UPDATE: Polk County Public Schools will reopen on Tuesday, October 4. Students should be prepared to resume their normal class schedules at that time, according to school officials. At the urging of County emergency officials and the National Weather Service, Polk County Public Schools are to activate some schools that will be serving as storm shelters for those evacuating their homes, creating the need to close the schools for classes effective and the end of today....
A civic organization working to re-create a historic landscaping plan in Lake Wales is seeking community help. Lake Wales Heritage is a non-profit group working to re-plant the 1930 landscape plan created by Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. "We need to find some helpies," said Heritage director and volunteer Tish Sheesley, citing the several projects the group is tackling. Alongside the tree-planting effort, the organization is launching an educational program for middle school stude...
Polk County residents with questions regarding hurricane debris are advised to call the Hurricane Ian Debris Hotline at (800) 375-0844. This is the only number that will be able to provide answers for all debris-related questions. Polk County's Waste & Recycling Division does not collect and dispose of debris from hurricanes. Your typical residential garbage, recycling, yard and bulk waste will need to be placed curbside separate from hurricane debris Residents are urged to...
Individuals in Polk County can apply for FEMA Individual Assistance for home repairs, lost and damaged property, food assistance, and more. according to a statement issued by the office of Congressman Darren Soto, who represents the Lake Wales area. Soto recently welcomed FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell "to assess damages and thank our first responders for their continued rescue and recovery efforts," he said. Soto expressed gratitude "for our first responders, who have...
Last year school shootings rose to the highest number in two decades. but according to the U.S. Department of Education, the most reported crimes on college campuses are burglaries, sexual harassment and motor vehicle thefts, Now more than ever, it's important for schools to use the best tools available to help keep campus safe. In response, Warner University and 911Cellular have launched a new smart phone app called "WarnerShield," designed to protect students and staff...
A free legal help hotline is now available for Hurricane Ian victims in the affected counties that include Polk. The hotline is available to connect residents to free legal services in qualifying counties who cannot afford an attorney. Residents can call (866) 550-2929 or go to https://www.americanbar.org/groups/committees/disaster/resources/disaster_legal_hotlines/. Hotline callers may get help with legal issues like: ● FEMA and SBA financial benefits ● Home repair contracts...
Several Polk County Environmental Lands sites have reopened to the public following Hurricane Ian, including Crooked Lake Prairie, Crooked Lake Sandhill, Gator Creek Reserve, Hickory Lake Scrub, Lakeland Highlands Scrub, Sherwood L. Stokes Preserve and SUMICA. While these sites are open, visitors are advised to use caution and follow the posted trail closures. Sections of trails may be under water and portions of trails may be closed, due to excessive downed trees and debris....
Unwilling to relax and call it a season, some Florida residents are keeping a close eye on the tropics as some models show a continuing parade of tropical waves moving off Africa and marching across the Atlantic. Unusually warm water temperatures across the basin are continuing to sustain the potential for development. The Lake Wales area has enjoyed delightful fall-like weather in the aftermath of the passage of Hurricane Ian, which brought up to two feet of rain and high...
Polk State College's campuses and centers will reopen on Monday, including the collegiate high schools, spokesperson Madison Fantozzi reported Sunday. Kyle Kennedy, spokesperson for Polk County Public Schools, said that "all available PCPS staff will return to work on Monday" in order to prepare the schools to receive students on Tuesday morning. Fantozzi's statement statement said that crews have been working through the weekend "to clear debris and repair minimal damages"...
WEDNESDAY 5:00 PM UPDATE: NOAA Doppler radar imagery indicates that the eye of Ian has made landfall on the mainland southwest Florida peninsula just south of Punta Gorda near Pirate Harbor. Maximum sustained winds at landfall were estimated to be 145 mph (235 km/h). They are now estimated to be 140 mph. A WeatherSTEM station at the Cape Coral Fire Department recently reported a wind gust of 110 mph (177 km/h). A WeatherFlow station in Grove City on the western side of...
TUESDAY 8:00 PM UPDATE: Hurricane Ian has continued to deepen as it moves toward Florida and model trends continue to shift the track toward the east, bringing the center of circulation over Polk County. Lake Wales is expected to be exposed to winds of up to 100 MPH sustained, with higher gusts. There is also an enhanced chance of tornados in this area. For the latest information on expected impacts to the Lake Wales area, please RETURN TO HOME PAGE The 5:00 Advisory from the...
UPDATE: Hurricane Ian has continued its trek toward Florida, now with 125 MPH winds. Further intensification is expected during the next 24 hours. The storm is now a Category Three, and is projected to reach Category Four status today. For the latest information on expected impacts to the Lake Wales area, please RETURN TO HOME PAGE Projections from the NHC depict that Ian will remain a Major Hurricane as it moves over the west central coast of Florida. Ian is now on a northerl...
There are no shelters designated to open in the Lake Wales area, according to Polk County and Polk School System officials. No explanation has been offered for that situation. Available shelters in Polk County will open Tuesday at the following locations: • Horizons Elementary School, 1700 Forest Lake Dr, Davenport • Sleepy Hill Elementary School, 2285 Sleepy Hill Rd, Lakeland • R. Bruce Wagner Elementary School, 5500 Yates Rd, Lakeland • Chain Of Lakes Elementary School....
As Hurricane Ian threatens Florida and the Lake Wales area, Polk County has announced that thirteen shelters will be opened across the county, None are in Lake Wales. The only designated shelter in the city, located at Spook Hill Elementary, will apparently not be opened despite the demand from those living in several large mobile home communities in southeast Polk. The LakeWalesNews.net had highlighted this continued neglect of the region in a story published at the start of...
In preparation for the approaching storm, all Polk County Environmental Lands sites and Natural Resources Stormwater Treatment Wetlands will be closed Monday, September 26, 2022 out of an abundance of caution and will remain closed until further notice. These sites include Circle B Bar Reserve, Crooked Lake Prairie, Crooked Lake Sandhill, Gator Creek Reserve, Hickory Lake Scrub, Lakeland Highlands Scrub, Marshall Hampton Reserve, North Walk-in-Water Creek, Peace River...
Saturday, August 13 marked the 18th anniversary of the most destructive hurricane to strike Lake Wales in recent memory, and thankfully the tropics remain quiet so far. Only a weak disturbance drifting westward near Texas is being remarked upon by the National Hurricane Center. The Friday the 13th storm of 2004 was the first of three direct strikes here in only six weeks, an event unprecedented in recorded history. Hurricanes Frances and Jeanne came evenly spaced, three weeks...
While the 2022 Hurricane Season has so far seemed quiet from our vantage point in Lake Wales, weather forecasters are warning that this is expected to be an above average season. The August outlook offered by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reduced the expected number of storms only by one. That prediction now includes a total of 14 to 20 named storms, of which only three have occurred. The hurricane season runs from June 1 until November 30, but the peak...
A divided boulevard featuring median plantings, turn lanes, sidewalks, bikeways, and efficient traffic roundabouts may be in the future of Buck Moore Road, depending upon the cooperation of Polk County in improving the county-maintained road. The corridor has been a concern for area residents as traffic has grown in recent years, and another 684 single-family homes are planned for construction along the one and a half mile connector link between SR 60 and Burns Avenue. The roa...
As the 2022 hurricane season begins, a map of Polk County Public Shelters shows that of the 47 shelters listed, only one is located in southeast Polk County, an area stretching east of US 27 and south of Waverly Road from Lake Kissimmee Sate Park to the Highlands County line, and including a population of more than 80,000. Spook Hill Elementary School is the only public shelter for the vast area, which has also previously hosted waves of refugees fleeing storms threatening...
Although the 2022 Hurricane season officially begins Wednesday, some models are already showing a threat to Florida. Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center in Miami are now allowing a 60 percent chance that a tropical storm will form in the southern Gulf of Mexico or western Caribbean in the next five days, and most models show any system there moving in a general north-eastward direction. Some show a weak and diffuse low-pressure area, but others are predicting a rapid...
Given an opportunity to help heal the community after a divisive search for a new charter school superintendent, two city commissioners said "no." A resolution presented to the city commission Tuesday night by Deputy Mayor Robin Gibson offered a welcome to the incoming Superintendent Dr. Wayne V. Rodolfich, who was chosen after a nearly year-long process. Commissioners Jack Hilligoss and Daniel Williams voted down the resolution, which failed on a 2-2 vote in the absence of...
The fate of the storied Walesbilt Hotel has been placed in the hands of the courts after the City of Lake Wales and the Community Redevelopment Agency filed a twelve-count lawsuit in Circuit Court. The lawsuit effectively deters any immediate work to rehabilitate the structure, which has been the focus of interest by a team of developers working with current owner Ray Brown. The lawsuit alleges that Brown, through his corporation Dixie Walesbilt LLC, defrauded the City and...
