Pinellas emergency management turns focus to residents who live on boats this hurricane season
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Pinellas County Emergency Management is focusing some extra attention on the boating community this hurricane season, especially people who live on boats.
Boaters and Pinellas officials are seeing more people moving off land and onto the water to live, and that comes with a different kind of storm prep.
Last August, George Cavanaugh rode out Hurricane Idalia in Tampa Bay on his sailboat.
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"When the wind howls, it howls, and that first feeling you have it’s like ‘oh I should have evacuated,’" said Cavanaugh, who has lived part-time on his catamaran in Gulfport for the last two and a half years. "You have no rent and the worst you have is your insurance. And it’s super cheap to live out here."
It makes him part of the community Pinellas County is handing out brochures to this hurricane season.
"We are stressing our liveaboard boaters, those who live on their boat. We want to make sure they know how to secure their boat," said Mary Burrell, a spokesperson for Pinellas County Emergency Management.
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Burrell said seeing 7,000 boats damaged from 2022’s Hurricane Ian in Lee County caught their attention, so they’re doing more outreach to recreational boaters and people who live on boats.
"These kinds of things you need to plan ahead for because you need to make a reservation at a marina. You’ve got to get a trailer and fix it up and that sort of thing," said Burrell.
When the time comes to evacuate, boat owners like Cavanaugh know their limits.
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"Everybody else, they have a set amount and mine is 55 miles per hour gusts, and then I’ll evacuate to a friend of mine’s house or back to my house in St. Pete Beach," he said.
But before leaving, he goes through the checklist to secure his boat.
"I would take all my sails down. I take off the canvas, take all the gas cans and store them all away," Cavanaugh said.
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Pinellas County has the second-largest number of registered boats in Florida, so officials said the extra reminders are necessary.
"Just evacuate, don’t take that chance. It’s not worth it," said Burrell.
Pinellas County officials said now is a good time to sign up for "Alert Pinellas," so you can get text alerts when a storm comes.
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