Sarasota County staff explain causes of flooding from Hurricane Debby

Sarasota County commissioners heard their first report from staff Tuesday [8/27/2024] on the effects on Hurricane Debby.

Staffers told commissioners that despite the county making all possible preparations and the stormwater and wastewater systems mostly working as designed, there was simply too much rain – up to 18 inches in some areas of Sarasota County over a three-day period – for the infrastructure to handle. Staff said the systems are designed to handle 10 inches in a 24-hour period.

Large sections of the county were flooded for days after the storm, causing evacuations of entire communities and an estimated $49 million in damage to homes and property.

There were 17 sanitary sewer overflows reported, with 1.2 million gallons reported spilled during the storm. Nine of the county’s 785 lift stations had sewer overflows; four lift stations were inoperable from high water levels. County trucks hauled nearly 1.5 million gallons of wastewater to treatment facilities.

After the storm, the county estimates as of Aug. 22, 964 tons of storm debris have been removed.

The coastal areas fared better, although some roads were damaged and beach erosion was noted, specifically the loss of 8,600 cubic yards of beach at one section near Turtle Beach Park, and 14,868 cubic yards of sand lost at the Manasota Beach project. That’s the equivalent of 950 dump truck loads, staff said.

The county is expediting the permit process related to storm damage repairs and suspected certain building permit fees for storm-related repairs.