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Pinellas County barrier islands opening on Saturday afternoon for residents, business owners

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Published  September 28, 2024 10:48am EDT
Pinellas County
FOX 13 News

TREASURE ISLAND, Fla. - Barrier islands are opening for residents, business owners, and employees with a Barrier Island Re-Entry Permit on Saturday afternoon.

At 4 p.m., access to all beaches and barrier islands will be open.


The north and southbound lanes of Gulf Boulevard will remain closed from 150th Avenue (Tom Stuart Causeway) south to 140th Avenue in Madeira Beach. Additionally, Gulf Boulevard, both north and southbound from the Park Boulevard Bridge to 196th Avenue (Tiki Gardens County Park) in Indian Shores will also remain closed.

To gain access to the barrier islands, citizens must provide their Barrier Island Re-Entry Permit or photo ID and reasonable proof that they reside or have legitimate business on the barrier islands.

Examples of this include:

  • Vehicle registration
  • Property tax or utility bill
  • Proof of employment (pay stub, work ID, uniform)
  • Work orders

Power is still out and traffic lights and signals are not functioning, according to officials. Each intersection needs to be treated as a four-way stop.

Additional law enforcement resources will be patrolling all of the mandatory evacuation areas to ensure public safety and protect property during this event. This includes the Pinellas County barrier island communities.

Deputies say they will reevaluate any further openings tomorrow morning. 

READ: Pinellas towns ‘hammered’ by Hurricane Helene

The city announced that public works teams continued clearing debris and sand out of roadways to make them passable on Saturday morning.

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