Mayor Suarez: Cranes, scooters and Miami nursing homes are ready for Hurricane Dorian
The cranes are secured. The scooters are off the streets. And the elderly residents living in Miami’s 150 nursing homes are safe in their facilities.
At a press conference at the City of Miami emergency operations center Friday afternoon, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez gave updates on some top-of-mind issues ahead of Hurricane Dorian, which is expected to slam into Florida’s southeast coast Monday or Tuesday as a Category 4 storm.
Miami officials told reporters a day earlier that city inspectors have been visiting construction sites to ensure contractors have a plan to secure equipment — including cranes, which caused problems during Hurricane Irma in September 2017. Irma’s powerful winds snapped three cranes at South Florida construction sites, including two in Miami.
Suarez said Friday that city officials are still working on securing cranes, in hopes of avoiding an Irma redux. The order has already been given to contractors, he said.
“The cranes will be spinning,” he said. “But we want to make sure they won’t collapse like they did during Irma. The cranes will be free to rotate.”
Another safety hazard? The electric scooters and city bikes that pepper the city’s sidewalks. Suarez said six out of six companies have taken their devices off the street, meeting the Friday noon deadline.
The mayor accompanied the City of Miami Fire Department on some of its inspections of the 150 nursing homes and assisted living facilities to make sure the most vulnerable and elderly are protected. They all have working fire alarms, sprinklers and generators, he said.
Every facility in the city of Miami is “in compliance,” despite the fact that 60% of facilities statewide are not, he said.
Suarez added that the city’s public works department is also monitoring the king tide, which is tracking 11 inches above normal. In addition to the city’s stationary pumps, the city also has four moveable pumps and two contracted portable pumps that will helpcombat some flooding.
Current estimates from the National Hurricane Center suggest Dorian could bring 6 to 12 inches of rain to the southeast coast, with some spots seeing up to 15 inches.
In preparation for Dorian, the city expanded the capacity of one pump system and installed a new one in Brickell, the site of dramatic flooding during Hurricane Irma in 2017.
“Based on the performance of the storm, we will be making decisions on where those portable pumps will be stationed,” Suarez said.
The mayor also gave updates on where residents can access supplies:
▪ Water and ice will be at Marlins Park (501 Marlins Way). It will also be distributed throughout the city in each of the commission districts.
▪ Sandbags can be picked up at Grapeland Park (1550 NW 37th Ave.) and Legion Park (6447 NE 7th Ave) from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Limit is six bags per person. Proof of City of Miami residence is required.
A mini dump is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday at 290 NW 20th St. for landscape-type debris like trees and branches. Proof of City of Miami residence is required.
▪ Additional bulk trash pickup will continue through Saturday
Miami Herald staff writers Joey Flechas and Alex Harris contributed to this report