PILTRO secures safe transport during emergencies

Jul 3, 2009 4 min read

By MARIANNE PATON

Pine Island Long Term Recovery Organization continues to ensure the safety of island residents in the event of an emergency. In addition to the continued work by the Beacon of HOPE, collecting first response data for the Matlacha-Pine Island Fire District and feeding the hungry, PILTRO recently worked out an evacuation plan with Lee County Emergency Management, along with LeeTran, to ensure that all residents who need to evacuate the island are able to do so.

Last month, the county emergency management office announced it would provide an evacuation bus route to safely transport residents from Pine Island and Matlacha to emergency shelters inland.

“I was not here for Hurricane Charley, but after reading the after-report, I decided there was a real need as a very low percentage of the island population had evacuated for Charley,” said Jay Stakenburg, EOC chief of operations. “I later met Besty Haesemeyer from PILTRO and inquired about the need for transportation on the island and she was very animated about the fact that there was a great need for the program.”

According to Stakenburg, the bus evacuation program is not new to the county and has been implemented in three other locations. In addition, should the area be threatened by a hurricane during the 2009 season, EOC will alert residents with regard to the implementation of bus evacuation through the local media as well as the EOC Web site at LeeEOC.com and on twitter at twitter.com/LeeEOC.

“We are very happy that the county has decided to offer this evacuation service to Pine Island. There are a lot of elderly and disabled people out here that simply cannot drive themselves to a shelter, not to mention all of the people who drive cars that wouldn’t make it past the Matlacha Bridge because they are in such bad shape,” said Sherri Dube with the Beacon of HOPE. “Before this, we had no real plan to help these people evacuate, now we have a positive plan that will work smoothly.”

The LeeTran bus will stop to load passengers at the following locations:

n Intersection of Raymary Street at Stringfellow Road in Bokeelia

n Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal Catholic Church on Stringfellow Road in Bokeelia

n Winn-Dixie parking lot on Stringfellow Road in St. James City

n Flamingo Bay parking lot on Stringfellow Road in St. James City

n VFW parking lot on Stringfellow Road in St. James City

n First Baptist Church on Oleander Street in St. James City

Whether taking the LeeTran bus or evacuating in your own vehicle, it is important to know which buildings off of the island will serve as public shelters during an evacuation order. The following list features the shelters within the closest proximity of Pine Island and Matlacha. It is important to note that there are no shelters on Pine Island.

n Diplomat Elementary, 1115 N.E. 16th Terrace, Cape Coral

n Island Coast High School, 2125 DeNavarra Pkwy., Cape Coral

n J. Colin English Elementary School, 120 Pine Island Road, North Fort Myers

n Lee County Civic Center, 11831 Bayshore Road, North Fort Myers

n Littleton Elementary, 700 Hutto Road, North Fort Myers

n Mariner High School, 701 Chiquita Blvd., North Cape Coral

n Mariners Middle School, 425 Chiquita Blvd., Cape Coral

n Skyline Elementary School, 620 S.W. 19th St., Cape Coral

The buses will go only to the shelter determined most suitable by the EOC and will make every effort to provide English/ Spanish translators at the designated shelter to assist evacuees. These shelters do not provide bedding or personal hygiene items and they do not allow pets. Packing light will be essential as those utilizing the bus service will only be allow to bring what they can carry in two hands.

If you have special needs and are taking the bus or going on your own to a shelter, it is important to submit an application now so that proper provisions can be made at the shelter to be evacuated to during an emergency situation. To get more information about applying for special needs assistance or to fill out a registration form for a special needs shelter or transportation, visit the Beacon of HOPE at 5465 Pine Island Road, near the island center or call 283-5123. The Beacon is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Individuals with special medical needs who also need transportation must register with the EOC long before the threat of a storm to ensure their needs will be met.

For more information about services provided by Lee County Emergency Management, visit LeeEOC.com