North Beach at Fort De Soto Park reopens Monday months after hurricanes
North Beach at Fort De Soto Park reopening
Months after back-to-back hurricanes, North Beach reopens Monday at Fort De Soto Park. FOX 13’s Jennifer Kveglis shows us the long process of finally getting the beach back open.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - After five months of restoration, a popular beach at Pinellas County's largest public park is reopening on Presidents' Day.
The backstory:
Fort De Soto Park received extensive damage from Hurricanes Helene and Milton. A few weeks ago, most of the 1,136-acre park reopened. Its North Beach was among the final barriers.
Park Ranger Marina Mullins said it took a lot of hard work to get it ready for visitors again.
"We've been working ten hours a day every day of the week to really get this place restored and reopened," she said.
Helene's storm surge pushed the unimaginable onto its shoreline from Tierra Verde and Anna Maria Island communities.
"I mean fridges, mattresses, full patio sets that had washed up," she explained.
Milton added to the troubles.
"What happened is it then covered up all of that debris with about 4 to 5 feet of sand," she said.
Mullins said it took a team effort to clear out the thousands of tons of debris.
North Beach at Fort De Soto Park reopens on Monday, months after back-to-back hurricanes.
"... different areas of Pinellas County, Parks & Conservation which is us rangers here, as well as volunteers, FEMA contractors," she said.
A sand sifting operation was established to sort debris out of the park's 7-mile shoreline.
"A lot of replacements and repairs. Electrical, on the campground, a lot of walls to buildings, grills, picnic tables," Mullins said.
What's next:
According to the county, the East Loop and portions of the seawall near the historic site are still closed to the public due to damage. Visitors are encouraged to use caution when accessing the facilities and to be courteous to others navigating the area.
For more information on Fort De Soto Park, click here.
The Source: Information for this story was gathered by FOX 13's Jennifer Kveglis.
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