Waiting on a hurricane is like being stalked by a turtle…

This statement seems to hold true in describing Hurricane Dorian….slow and steady.  Wekiva Island is no stranger to major catastrophes. We have survived fires and the terrible flooding Hurricane Irma brought in 2017.

On Monday, August 26th, after seeing reports about a little storm named Dorian, the Wekiva Island Management Team began meticulously reviewing the Hurricane Preparedness Plan. Items were added and plans were tweaked, all while keeping a close eye on each new weather report released.

On Wednesday, August 28th, staff began putting our preparation plans into action as the reports were becoming more and more serious for the State of Florida. Staff started gathering supplies, including generators, plywood, ropes, straps, and gasoline.  Cabana renters were notified of the current status and started moving into full preparation mode.  Tent canopies came down; cabana furniture stored; the lovely spinning wind sculptures removed; sandbags filled – while our eyes stayed glued to The Weather Channel.

Memories of Irma still remain with the massive flooding the storm brought to The Island. We tell stories about our staff trying to grill hot pockets, our beloved Franco yelling at the storm from the riverbank, catching crawfish in the bathrooms, and oh the millions of fire ants and the alligator in the side yard. We pray we will never see flooding like that again as we update our preparations for yet another possible flood.

We tried to forget about our responsibilities on Saturday night – even for just a little while – as we listened to Sean Holcomb. We sang and danced, we enjoyed our White Claws and watched as our owner, Bill Weinaug, took off his own Lucchese’s and gave them to Sean! We hugged our regulars, like Wes Burris, extra hard as he is a lineman and we know he will be working very hard and will be away from his family for a while.

Wekiva Island is always all about FUN, but today we turn our attention to make sure that our staff, families, and guests are all safe. We will close on Tuesday, September 3rd and hope to reopen as soon as possible.

Our message to you….hold your family tight and be safe.

Carrie Ann Vanderhoef