Sarasota, Florida, Mayor Erik Arroyo told CNN on Wednesday that the city is pulling police officers off the streets because of dangerous conditions.
“We’ve just made the decision to pull all of our police officers off the streets just because of the constant wind pressure we’re experiencing,” Arroyo said.
According to the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office, “Individual agencies decide when to pull first responders off the road in extreme weather events. Some agencies have already made this decision, others will soon do so.”
Arroyo encouraged people still in the city to “heed the governor’s warning and sit down patiently.”
“It’s too late to evacuate at this point. So everyone in ‘A’ and ‘B’ areas will feel the effects of this storm first. They will feel the storm. And that’s it. the reason why we tried to evacuate them for a while back,” he said.
Arroyo lists the preparatory work that has been done, including the utilities department making sure the generators are ready to go and the amusement and park department removing items that could become ballistics .
When asked about the possibility that maybe 12 to 24 inches of rain could affect Sarasota, Arroyo said “I’m just telling you that 10 inches of rain is enough for your car to float around, so here are the Very serious condition that everyone should take seriously.”
Arroyo says the city has been preparing for Hurricane Ian since last week. “We’ve seen the impact it can have,” the mayor said.
“So at this point, all we have is who we are as a community, so take care of your neighbours. Because we’re in trouble. this together. And we’ll get through it,” he said.
