Gov. Rick Scott, along with other state and local officials, will work together to determine if and when evacuations will be ordered for Palm Beach County and the Treasure Coast.
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By Tuesday night, no mandatory evacuations were ordered for Hurricane Irma.
Still, some Treasure Coast residents are making voluntary plans to leave, especially those who live on Hutchinson Island.
Some of those people stayed on the island during Hurricane Matthew last year.
Even though Irma’s future path is unknown, some people do not want to take chances this time.
Hurricane Harvey’s recent, devastating aftermath in Texas still weighs on many people’s minds and is also having some impact on whether people stick around if Irma makes landfall in our area.
Bill Gangi is not one of those people.
“Somebody’s got to stay and watch out for it,” Gangi said.
He lives in the Nettles Island residential community, which can be prone to flooding in strong storms.
He stayed put for Matthew and is already making arrangements to stay if Irma hits. “Eight people that I know said they’re going to stick it out this time,” Gangi said.
He knows some of his neighbors are already planning to leave before the end of the week. He wants to serve as a guardian for people’s homes.
“If the eye of the storm comes this way, during the eye of the storm, I’ll blast around on my golf cart and check everything out,” Gangi said.
First responders would rather Gangi leave during a mandatory evacuation, though they can not force him to do so.
He understands the risk, he says.
“I'm on my own, and I can’t blame nobody but myself if I do get stuck in a bind,” Gangi said.
Michael Samuels works at the Nettles Island Marina.
He also stayed behind during Hurricane Matthew to keep an eye on the boats and try to prevent damage.
But for Irma, he’s following his gut.
“I just had a good feeling about [Matthew]. I don’t have a good feeling about this one.”
Hurricane Harvey’s damage is also fresh on his mind. “It’s going to weigh on a lot of people’s minds,” Samuels said.
He is already planning to move all of the boats out of the Marina before the end of the week.
“That’s what we’re worried about, the surge.”
He’s also leaving by Friday, unless the storm makes a sudden turn away from Florida, he says.
