City Encourages Residents to Prepare for Idalia

Sandbag Locations Now Open

August 27, 2023

TD10 was upgraded to Tropical Storm Idalia around 11:30 a.m. on Aug. 27, 2023.

The City of Tallahassee is closely monitoring Tropical Depression 10. City departments are prepared to respond as needed, and residents are encouraged to prepare now while there is time. The City’s Step-by-Step PREP Guide, available at Talgov.com/PREP, provides a disaster supplies checklist, tips about hardening your home and information about vital City services, such as electric, water and solid waste.

According to the National Weather Service, TD10 is forecast to become a tropical storm as soon as later today; its name will be Idalia, pronounced "ee-DAL-ya". It is anticipated to reach hurricane status by Tuesday. Uncertainty remains around the exact location or magnitude of impacts, so the region should prepare. Historically, local impacts have included sustained high winds and heavy rainfall, which cause downed trees and localized flooding.

To assist citizens in flood-prone areas, the City opened two sandbag locations today, Sunday, Aug. 27. Sandbag sites are available at the Mike Blankenship Skate Park (2909 Jackson Bluff Road) and the former Northwood Centre site behind El Jalisco off North Monroe Street. Sandbags are limited to 25 bags per household. Citizens need to bring shovels to fill bags themselves. Locations will not be staffed, but crews will monitor and provide additional sand and bags as needed. The site will be open until the storm threat has passed and it is determined there is no longer a need.

For information on Leon County sandbag operations, visit www.LeonCountyFL.gov/ei/.

City crews will continue to check areas of known flooding to remove obstructions and post warnings for drivers as needed. All motorists should use caution and not drive through flooded areas or around barricades.

Electric Utility crews are ready to be deployed, with extra staffing and mutual aid on standby as needed. Should outages occur, customers can easily report them via the City’s free DigiTally app or via Talgov.com/Outage. A map showing general areas with reported outages is available on both the website and app. City utility customers can also call 850-891-4968 to report power outages; call wait times will be longer during major events. Both the DigiTally app and the customer service phone line can be used to report other City service issues as well.

Citizens are encouraged to sign up to receive City news at Talgov.com/Subscribe. They can also stay informed about City services as this weather system develops by following @CityofTLH on Twitter and Facebook and checking Talgov.com regularly.