Hurricane Milton will likely test flooding vulnerabilities of newer St. Johns County developments like Beachwalk, Beacon Lake and Rivertown, Sheriff Robert Hardwick said Wednesday ahead of the storm’s arrival.
During a question-and-answer session broadcast from his department’s St. Augustine headquarters, a resident asked if communities that border evacuation zones like Beacon Lake, Beachwalk and parts of Rivertown should leave their homes.
“Some of these neighborhoods are brand new and have not been tested yet for flooding,” he said at a press conference alongside St. Johns Fire Chief Sean McGee. “Meaning that nature was this way before the houses and the infrastructure was placed there and now there is a lot of infrastructure there — drainage and roads.”
Hardwick noted that the county has grown by 43% over the past decade, and that many newcomers and recently erected neighborhoods have yet to grapple with a serious storm. While mitigation measures are in place, it’s impossible to know how an unprecedented weather event will impact a particular area.
“We haven’t seen what some of these neighborhoods will do,” he said, adding that residents in areas that border evacuation zones should make whatever decision sets them at ease ahead of Milton.
“We’re going to have areas of St. Johns County that have never had flooding before,” he said, stressing that no two storms are the same.
Both McGee and Hardwick counseled residents to keep an eye on their immediate surroundings as Milton churns.
“You’ve got to pay attention to what’s going on in your surroundings,” Hardwick said. “Are your drainage ditches full already?”
McGee noted that he’s worked every major storm in St. Johns County since 1998 — and that he knows better than to make any assumptions one way or another.
“I recommend you do what you feel is best for you and your family,” he said of those in areas bordering evacuation zones. “You’re feeling threatened, you’re feeling nervous — go ahead and leave.”
