For many coastal residents, Matthew was a chance to take photos and watch the waves, such as these off Ocean Ridge.
Photos by Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star
Employees put cross arms back on the bridge at George Bush Boulevard in Delray Beach.
The arms are removed before hurricane-force winds might turn them into projectiles.
A short run of cable TV line had to removed from A1A after Matthew passed in South Palm Beach.
By Jane Smith and Dan Moffett
As Hurricane Matthew wobbled to the east in early October, south county coastal residents and officials sighed with relief.
When the Category 4 storm was expected to move west toward the county, it started to undergo an “eyewall replacement cycle” where the center of the storm can broaden into a wider band. That effect helped South Florida avoid a direct hit, the National Weather Service said.
Matthew provided a nearly $14 million training exercise for local officials and residents who last prepared for a hurricane more than 10 years ago. That was before Facebook, Twitter and other social media helped to stir up the hurricane hype.
“It was a good experience finding out where our weaknesses are and our problems lie,” Delray Beach City Manager Don Cooper told the City Commission one week after the storm. Everyone worked well together in tight quarters, some in areas without air-conditioning after the City Hall chillers broke — again. The city’s facilities are showing their age, he said.
In the south county area, Delray Beach and Boca Raton suffered the most damage to their beaches, considered their crown jewels.
Delray Beach lost about 75,000 cubic yards or 20 feet of shoreline, according to initial estimates. (As a comparison, Spaceship Earth, the iconic structure at Walt Disney World’s Epcot, has a total volume of 81,000 cubic yards, according to The Measure of Things website.)
The sand replacement cost is estimated to be about $2.1 million, including a 10 percent fee for engineering, design and permits and a 10 percent fee to cover cost overruns. Just getting a dredge to come will cost about $4 million.
Dan Bates, the county’s deputy director of Environmental Resources Management, said that Delray Beach could share the dredge cost with Boca Raton. That city’s previous beach project was not finished before turtle-nesting season started March 1, meaning the dredge will have to return to the south county after Nov. 1.
Boca Raton lost 895,000 cubic yards of sand from its three beaches, Bates said of the preliminary data reported to FEMA. The county has not been able to survey the beaches because of the windy weather.
At Delray Beach’s estimate of $6 per cubic yard, the bill for sand alone in Boca Raton would come to $5.37 million. Plus 10 percent for cost overruns would total $5.9 million. Another 10 percent would be added for design, engineering and permit fees to create a sand bill of nearly $6.5 million. The dredge cost would be extra.
Delray Beach also will pay $700,000 in overtime to its public safety and other city staff.
The entire police force was deployed, combining day and night shifts, Chief Jeff Goldman told the commission on Oct. 13. “They didn’t sleep, they were always on duty and deployed throughout the city,” he said.
He also thanked the commission for the curfew, which started at 6 p.m. Oct. 6, when Hurricane Matthew was expected to hit overnight. “Most people stayed in and off the roads,” he said, creating an ideal situation for public safety workers.
The Fire-Rescue Department increased its staffing level to 86 percent; 33 percent is usually at work on a 24-hour shift, Fire Chief Neal de Jesus told commissioners. Even though the barrier island was under an evacuation order, the fire-rescue staff never vacated its coverage of the area, de Jesus said.
New emergency management director Steve Hynes earned praise for his accurate forecasts emailed to commissioners and department heads because they were factual, not hyped as the newscasts that day and into the night.
For other coastal cities, staff overtime costs will be the biggest bill.
In Ocean Ridge, Town Manager Jamie Titcomb said, “I can tell you that we initially reported $32,000 to the County’s [Emergency Operations Center] in conjunction with their countywide assessment for FEMA application data purposes.
“The storm itself had little direct impact on the town of Ocean Ridge, we were truly lucky this time. I have worked in official capacity for every storm event since 1999, so I can say that with some technical knowledge.”
South Palm Beach Town Manager Bob Vitas said no public property was damaged, but several condo buildings suffered damage to their stairways to the beach.
Vitas also said the town’s six police officers were on duty around the clock for two days, costing several thousand dollars in overtime.
Town Manager Linda Stumpf said Manalapan suffered no significant damage — just a couple of downed trees. However, the town will have to pay about $26,000 in extra wages for police and other employees who worked overtime during the storm. Stumpf said she’s looking into getting some reimbursement from FEMA.
Gulf Stream Town Manager Bill Thrasher had his costs broken down to the penny. One-hundred, seventy-eight hours of overtime cost $7,842.08, food cost $300 and equipment rental at $9,500. Total storm-related costs were $17,642.08.
Finance Director Cale Curtis tallied unaudited storm costs for Highland Beach at $6,370 — $6,240 for overtime costs and $130 for equipment/supplies.
Boynton Beach saw mostly yard debris-related damage and one public art structure was damaged, according to Assistant City Manager Tim Howard. “We are currently compiling costs associated with the hurricane,” he said. “We will seek reimbursement when it’s available.”
Deborah Manzo, Lantana’s town manager, said most of the town’s costs were for extra wages for preventive measures, recovery efforts and the equipment used. “We estimate those costs to be around $40,000 to $50,000,” she said.
Briny Breezes reported no damage or overtime costs from Matthew. Boynton Beach Police and Fire Rescue are handling the town’s public safety issues under the contractual rate.
“We were very lucky this time,” said Briny Town Council President Sue Thaler. “We had no damage at all.”
Sallie James, Steve Plunkett, Rich Pollack and Mary Thurwachter contributed to this story.
Comments