News Cast for October 14th:
Getting the lights turned on
Power restoration was nearly complete in Okeechobee this morning after the tornadoes spawned by Hurricane Milton.
Florida Power and Light said they had 111 customers without power while Glades Electric had everyone restored.
Neighboring counties were not as fortunate with thousands still out of power in Highlands and St. Lucie, and just over 1,000 in Martin County.
Okeechobee had 2,000 families served at the Ag Center with supplies and tarps from the Florida Air National Guard 125th fighter wing and the 124th Infantry 1st battalion.
President Joe Biden visited Tampa Bay to see the storm damage from Milton.
He vowed to help Floridians recover.
“I met with small business owners and homeowners who have taken a real beating from back to back storms. They are heart broken and exhausted and expenses are piling up.”
The national weather service said the tornado that impacted Dixie Ranch Acres was a EF-2 with 115 mile per hour winds, 8.5 miles long and 250 yards wide.
In Glades County FEMA visited Twin Palms to register residents for federal assistance programs. The Tornado was an EF-3 with 140 mile per hour winds, 9.1 miles long and 200 yards wide.
Churches down in Lakeport hosted distributions of supplies and are collecting supplies for the 40 families whose homes were destroyed in Milton.
FEMA assistance is available at disaster.gov or 1-800-621-3362.
The Okeechobee Tourist Development Council secured three events in the Bassmaster Series this winter.
They are the elite series itself, the college series on January 29-30 and the Phoenix BFL tournament on February 8.
The college series is expected to bring 500 anglers, and additional spectators and staff.
They did approve a bakery Christmas market funding request of $3,000.
TDC member Monica Clark raised concern about the TDC funding private for profit business.
“It is a private business that is having an event and It doesn’t seem to follow the protocal in what we are doing with funding at the TDC.”
Staff said the event was a huge success in 2023 and did draw a lot of out-of-town visitors.
The TDC also turned down applications for $5,000 for the Bear Sutton Cowboy Challenge Benefit and $5,000 for the Okeechobee rodeo team.
The South Florida Water Management District approved a 1.63 billion dollar budget with no public comment.
The millage rate has declined by 63 percent in the past year. The home valued at $200,000 in Okeechobee would pay $205 dollars in property taxes.
Proposed growth toward Okeechobee in St. Lucie County is again dividing the county and Port St. Lucie.
The city which has grown more than any in the region is now complaining about growth west of the city that is impacting their infrastructure.
Mayor Shannon Martin said the streets leading into the city are already in bad shape.
“It has never been more important to make sure that whoever is creating future impacts pays for those impacts. That is all we’ve asked for all along.”
The city has sent the county a letter with concerns about growth.
Martin said certain members of the county commission does not want to work with the city despite the cities best efforts.