============================================================ DIGITAL DIGEST � http://www.bonitanews.com � September 5, 2004 ============================================================ Subscribe to the Bonita Daily News: http://web.naplesnews.com/circulation/
EAST COAST RESIDENTS HUDDLE IN SHELTERS, WAIT FOR STORM They had rushed to nail plywood over windows, spray-paint warnings that would ward off looters and huddle in schools while hoping for safety. But in the final hours before Hurricane Frances arrived, the residents of the usually tranquil Treasure Coast city of Vero Beach could only wait. There was nothing else to do Saturday. About 5,500 people had filed into the county's five shelters. The streets were deserted. And the storm's powerful eye slowly approached in sputters that prompted more anxiety than calm. RESIDENTS FEAR DIKE AROUND LAKE OKEECHOBEE MAY FAIL Without Lake Okeechobee, they would have no nutrient-rich muck to nourish sugar farms and orange groves. No world-famous bass fishing tournaments. No dependable canteen. The 730-square-mile lake has given so much life for the people of Glades and Hendry counties on its western side. But as the edge a fearsome Hurricane Frances started to lash the rural area Saturday, those people began associating the abundant waters with death. LEE RESIDENTS, EVACUEES LEFT TO WATCH, WAIT AS STORM STALLS With Hurricane Frances stalled off Florida's east coast, there is nothing to do for Lee County but wait and watch. "We are watching the storm very closely. With Charley, we expected it to go toward Tampa and it didn't and it kind of caught us by surprise," said Gordon "Booch" DeMarchi, public information officer for the Lee County Emergency Operations Center. "We don't want that to happen again, so we are watching to make sure it doesn't make a surprise turn." FRANCES FORECAST TO BRING WIND, SOME RAIN TO COLLIER The outer edges of a sluggish Hurricane Frances most likely will settle over Collier County this morning, with storm bands moving slowly through the area. The worst of the weather for Collier County will bring between 1 and 5 inches of rain, with the higher end of the rain totals forecast for the eastern parts of the county, emergency managers say. EVACUEES TRY TO PASS TIME AT SHELTERS IN SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Wait. And wait some more. There's nothing east coast and local evacuees can do to make their stay in Southwest Florida emergency shelters any shorter. They have to wait for Frances to leave. As Frances slowly moved across the state Saturday, about 2,000 people were in the 10 American Red Cross shelters in Collier County schools and one for people with special needs, at Barron Collier High School. RESIDENTS, EVACUEES GRAPPLE WITH PROBLEM OF FINDING GAS The flashing lights on the gas pumps at the Site station in Bonita Springs told the story: "Invalid Fuel Level. Delivery Needed." Throughout Florida, gas stations are either out of gas or near empty. Yellow caution tape surrounds pumps. Plastic bags cover nozzles. Hurricane Frances closed ports near Miami that normally supply the state with fuel fresh from refineries, Lee County government spokesman Gordon "Booch" DeMarchi said. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Click on the link below to be removed from the bonitanews.com mailing list. http://web.bonitanews.com/cgi-bin/[EMAIL PROTECTED] >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> $9.95 domain names from Yahoo!. Register anything. http://us.click.yahoo.com/J8kdrA/y20IAA/yQLSAA/BCfwlB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/kumpulan/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
