Residents in the Glades communities are breathing a sigh of relief post Hurricane Matthew. Lake Okeechobee did not cause any flooding along the communities surrounding the Lake.
It's been a windy, but peaceful day on Lake Okeechobee.
"We did get the wind, we did get the rain but God spared us from disaster," said Reverend Patricia Wallace in Pahokee.
Reverend Wallace watched from her home window Thursday night as the outer bands of Hurricane Matthew were felt across Palm Beach County.
"That feeling of, oh how bad will it really get was there and very present," she said.
Army Corps of Engineers spent the week monitoring the lake levels and inspecting the Herbert Hoover Dike. On Friday they were back out and say lake levels continue to rise, but the dike "weathered the storm well."
"There were crews, [city and county] staff members were here throughout the night monitoring not only the marina area but the entire portion of the city of Pahokee in town, headed out of town. We're just very very lucky. We fared very very well," said Tammy Jackson-Moore, Deputy City Manager of Pahokee.
Jackson-Moore says there were about 100 residents who stayed at the Pahokee Middle School shelter. Many of those were mobile home residents who secured their homes and evacuated.
"We need not take storms for granted so when the authorities say move, move; take shelter, go to the shelter. Don't try to brave the storm," added Reverend Wallace.
The Corps has resumed discharges from Lake Okeechobee that were halted during the storm. Water managers are maximizing outflows in order to slow any water level rise in the lake.
