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As downed trees scattered the streets and power outages plagued the city, Gainesville Pride remained unscathed in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.
Nearly 56,000 residents, or about 40% of Gainesville, lost power during the peak of Hurricane Helene.It was an unusual occurrence for a city far enough inland to typically miss widespread storm impact. For reference, about 12,000 lost power during Hurricane Debby, the last to hit Gainesville, in August.The storm slammed Florida’s west coast late Thursday as a major Category 4 hurricane, bringing 140 mph winds and storm surges of up to 9 feet in coastal areas, including Cedar Key.Gainesville faced 60 mph winds that damaged power lines and toppled trees, but there were no major injuries reported. Over 50 deaths were recorded from Hurricane Helene as of Friday afternoon, 11 of which were in Florida. The city saw just 0.58 inches of rain Thursday. By comparison, the city saw over 6 inches of rain when Hurricane Irma hit the state as a Category 5 storm in August 2017.Power outages across cityGainesville Regional Utility outages decreased to about 46,500, or about one-third of all Gainesville residents, by 6:15 a.m. Friday. About 10,000 people in the city still don’t have power as of 11 a.m. Saturday. Ninety-two people spent Thursday night in shelters, the city reported. Alachua County opened two pet-friendly general population shelters and a special needs shelter in anticipation of the storm.GRU crews are working to restore power to those who lost it, the company said in an email Friday morning. “We are still assessing the full extent of the damage,” the email said. “We’re working on restoring power to those lines in addition to several wires down and multiple other outages.” Hurricane Helene took out two transmission lines, which GRU called “unusual” in social media posts. A transmission line carries electricity from a power source to homes and businesses.The company reported one of the lines had been repaired Friday afternoon. The other is still being addressed.Once both are repaired, lineworkers can focus on neighborhoods and businesses, GRU said.Mary Kate Hitpas and Abby Rindt, 22-year old UF physical therapy Ph.D. students and roommates, said their power went out around 9 p.m. Thursday night and returned by the following evening.The two live in an apartment off Southwest 13th Street but spent the day bouncing between various Gainesville coffee shops, where they used WiFi to study for an upcoming exam.“We were studying by candlelight last night,” said Hitpas from a Starbucks table strewn with empty coffee cups and sandwich wrappers.Lines for the Starbucks off the corner of 13th Street and University Avenue, as well as the deli at the adjacent Publix, extended out the door the majority of the day Friday as Gainesville residents clamored for access to charging outlets and hot food.Many of the apartments that lost power, including Looking Glass Apartments, The Quad and College Park Apartments, were located in Midtown. The lights for all local bars in that area, including JJ’s Tavern and Salty Dog Saloon, also went dark Thursday.Outages also stretched across Gainesville, from Hidden Village Apartments in the southwest corner of the city to the Santa Fe Oaks complex near the community college in the northwest.GRU also asked Gainesville residents to cut back on water use after several wastewater lift stations lost power. These stations pump wastewater through treatment plants, re-supplying local waterways.The company is unsure when full power and running water will be restored. Other than some damaged vehicles and trees, the city wasn’t affected too badly, said Lauren Sultemeier, a 43-year-old American Medical Response employee from Buffalo, New York.“Gainesville was very lucky and spared,” Sultemeier said.Sultemeier and fellow responder Lauren Stubblefield, 48, who works for Vicksburg Fire Department in Vicksburg, Mississippi, found out Monday they were being deployed cross-country by FEMA to assist in hurricane relief. They expect to be relocated soon from their base in Gainesville off Eighth Street to elsewhere in the state or region where more damage was reported, Sultemeier said. Fallen trees impact roadways, UF campusFallen trees caused much of the power line damage in a city designated as a “Tree City” for over 40 years. Norman Education Library's beloved grand oak tree was among the fallen. The oak, which had been growing in the courtyard of the UF College of Education at Norman Hall since 1932, split in three as a result of Helene’s strong winds. “This is truly a huge loss for the EduGator community,” the College of Education said in a statement Friday.Over 50 roadways were also reported blocked by downed trees following the storm Thursday night. Road blockages and outed traffic lights combined for dangerous driving conditions throughout Friday. In Alachua County, 169 traffic lights went out following the storm.While the hurricane has passed, its effects haven’t. GRU urges residents to continue to practice hurricane safety measures. “Do NOT approach downed power lines or trees on wires, safely leave the area and report it immediately,” GRU wrote Friday on X.Gainesville Regional Airport closed Thursday evening but reopened Friday. Six departing flights were canceled Thursday, 37% of the total scheduled for that day.Some students say UF delayed closureUF said in an email to students midday Wednesday that classes would be canceled on Thursday but resume Friday at 7 a.m.The university waited until 5 p.m. Thursday to cancel classes and close campus on Friday. Some families said the announcement came too late for students to travel to be with their parents elsewhere in Florida during the storm. Many had exams or assignments scheduled for Friday they didn’t think would be canceled.While he didn’t lose power at his East Hall dorm, Dylan Byerly, a 22-year-old UF electrical engineering senior, extended sympathies for students who wished to evacuate but couldn’t due to UF’s late announcement.“It really hurt a lot of students’ chances to evacuate,” he said. “If they had just canceled the day before, like all the other colleges in the state, it would have probably helped students who did plan on evacuating to leave earlier.”Florida State University announced on Tuesday that campus would close Wednesday through Friday after the storm was originally forecast to slam Tallahassee. The city ended up avoiding the worst of the storm’s winds as its path veered east.Also in Gainesville, both Santa Fe College and the Alachua County Public School System announced Wednesday they would remain closed Thursday and Friday. They plan to resume normal operations Monday.However, PK Yonge, the K-12 developmental school run by the university, and Baby Gator, the preschool serving children of staff, followed the UF main campus’ lead in canceling Thursday.Following Hurricane Helene’s path through Florida, UF President Kent Fuchs sent his warm regards to students and all those affected in an email Friday afternoon. He also said the university would resume normal operations Saturday in the announcement, signed simply as from “Kent.”“It is clear that our neighbors across the state are enduring significant damage and hardships,” he wrote. “My prayers and deepest sympathies are with them.”Contact Kairi Lowery at klowery@alligator.org. Follow her on X @kairiloweryy.Contact Zoey Thomas at zthomas@alligator.org. Follow her on X @zoeythomas39.
UPDATE: UF will reopen Saturday, having sustained only “minor damage from downed trees,” President Kent Fuchs wrote in an email Friday.No UF students or employees were injured in the storm, Fuchs added.“I want to extend my sincere thanks to our campus staff who worked tirelessly overnight and through the storm to ensure the university and our facilities remained steady,” Fuchs wrote in the email.
Currently, most Gators are focused on football, exams and costume planning for Halloween. Few are thinking about hurricanes.
A crowd of over 20 activists and concerned citizens gathered at the Gainesville Police Department Hall of Heroes Wednesday to watch Gainesville’s Chief Climate Officer Dan Zhu unveil the first draft of the city’s climate action plan.
Every gay person dabbles in the trifecta of dating apps. Grinder, Scruff, Tinder and maybe even Sniffles for the occasional anonymous hook up that somehow always takes place in a random gas station bathroom — giving a whole new meaning to pit stops.
Alachua County seeks to fulfill its promise of organic waste sustainability. But it may not be all sunshine within its chosen compost company.
Noah Adelson uses a hand-me-down bike on campus. It’s a Giant Rincon Mountain Bike from the 1990s. It’s not an extravagant bike, but it’s a safe one.
After parking rates in downtown Gainesville rose in July, some customers and business owners are worried about the future of downtown life.
The Eatery @ Broward Hall reopened its doors to students and Gainesville residents Aug. 22, doubling the hall’s original size and reworking its entire menu after an eight-month expansion and renovation project.
Manatee medicine, fashion shows and cook-offs: How to get involved at UF
Acclimation within a new athletic program at a university can be a daunting task. From finding the nearest gas station or trying new restaurants, the challenges are plentiful.
Gainesville police arrested three men Thursday on suspicion of targeting the stores and homes of minorities across two counties during violent robberies and home invasions.
The City of Gainesville Department of Transportation was awarded a $24.6 million federal grant from the Federal Transit Administration through the Biden-Harris administration’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which aims to achieve zero emissions by 2025.
Riders of the Regional Transit System reported experiencing app glitches since Tuesday, and the technology is still not working properly.
On Monday, William Briscoe was arrested on suspicion of the attempted murder of his girlfriend’s son, who escaped the incident unscathed.
During its Tuesday meeting, the Alachua County Commission opposed implementing a selective admission process at P.K. Yonge Developmental School and approved an at-large county election charter amendment to be placed on the November general election ballot.
The ability to move around Gainesville safely and efficiently is key to four of the City of Gainesville’s Strategic Plan goals: A Great Place to Live & Experience, Resilient Local Economy, Equitable Community and More Sustainable Community.
Dressed in colorful abayas and thawbs, mothers and fathers held onto their children with one hand and carried ornamented prayer rugs in the other. Friends exchanged greetings of “Eid Mubarak” (Blessed Festival) as they removed their shoes and entered a skating rink.
Framed by a neon array of the latest hemp, CBD and nicotine products neatly arranged in glass display cases, business partners Pedro Soler and Justin Mendoza paused when asked if there was a downside to the authorization of recreational marijuana in Florida.
Solutions by The State News
