Sarasota, Manatee sandbag centers open in anticipation of heavy rains

With a potential round of heavy rain possible this week, Sarasota County will open its sandbag-distribution sites from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday, June 2. This is in addition to the county’s scheduled distribution days.

Manatee County’s distribution schedule will continue through hurricane season, and Longboat Key’s next scheduled distribution is on Thursday.

A system of rainy weather is expected to develop along a stalled front in north Florida later this week, with low chances of tropical intensification. Still, higher-than-normal amounts of rainfall are expected in portions of Florida regardless of the system’s tropical status.

Up to 10 sandbags per vehicle will be available Wednesday at these self-service Sarasota County sites:

• Twin Lakes Park, 6700 Clark Road.
• Ed Smith Stadium parking lot, 2700 12th St.
• South County Fleet Services, 4571 State Road 776/Englewood Road.

In Longboat Key, a pre-scheduled sandbag distribution is scheduled to run from 8-11 a.m. Thursday, June 3 at the Broadway Beach Access lot. Additional pre-scheduled dates are planned in August and September.

In Manatee County, self-service sites are open from dawn to dusk through November at seven locations:

• Blackstone Park, 2112 14th Ave. W., Palmetto
• Myakka Community Center, 10060 Wauchula Road, Myakka City
• Palma Sola Park, 7815 40th Ave. W., Bradenton
• Parrish Park Overflow Parking, 7550 Fort Hamer Road, Parrish
• Rubonia Community Center, 1309 72nd St. E., Palmetto
• Rye Preserve, 905 Rye Wilderness Trail, Parrish
• Manatee County Stormwater Facility, 5511 39th St. E., Bradenton

Information supplied by Sarasota County says sandbags are effective for no more than 15 inches of flooding. Bags should be filled to half or two-thirds capacity. Bags should be laid out in a staggered pattern, like brickwork, and should be about 1.5 times wider than tall for maximum stability.

The National Hurricane Prediction Center gave the area of developing weather a 30% chance of becoming a cyclone over the next seven days.

Locally, rain chances range from 70-80% through Independence Day. According to the National Weather Service, 6   inches of rain could fall in portions of the Tampa Bay area.