Capital City Emerges From Hermine
Daily routines are slowly returning to normal in Tallahassee. A week ago, we saw a storm in the Gulf of Mexico growing into a tropical storm and eventually into a hurricane. As we watched the “cone” in which it was expected to travel in the ensuing days, we soon realized that Tallahassee and our nearby coastal communities would be in Hermine’s path. Local schools were closed on Thursday and Friday, and by midday Thursday state officials and most other businesses were closing. All that remained was to brace for Hermine’s landfall late Thursday night/early Friday morning.
During the night, most Tallahasseeans lost power to their homes. At one point, nearly three-fourths of the city’s power users were without power. As we awoke on Friday, we began to see the damage Hermine had done. Visitors to our city know that Tallahassee is uniquely known in Florida for our trees, which form canopies over many of our roads and add character to our neighborhoods. In a storm, though, these trees can fall on homes, cars, and power lines and cause destruction throughout the city.
Over the weekend, with still half of the city lacking power, school officials decided that local schools would not reopen on Tuesday but instead would be targeting Wednesday. Even on Tuesday, about 10,000 residents lacked power. Still, most businesses have been able to reopen, and school will resume this week. The cleanup process will continue, but memories of the aftermath of Hermine will live on for many years in Tallahassee.