3433 Oakwood Hills Pkwy Eau Claire , WI 54701-7698
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A LOOK BACK : FLORIDA HURRICANE RESPONSE
Just 10 months ago Hurricane
Matthew walloped Haiti , Cuba , the Dominican Republic , and the southeastern United States – especially Florida ’ s northeast coast – leaving billions of dollars in damage and hundreds of deaths in its wake .
Tropical storm development already this hurricane season ( June 1 to November 30 ) has forecasters intrigued . It also has Ayres Associates ’ inspection teams in preparation mode with training and lessonslearned discussions fresh in their minds from last year ’ s post-storm response in Florida Department of Transportation ( FDOT ) Districts 2 and 5 . Services included immediate damage assessments on roads , bridges , culverts , and ancillary highway structures and providing repair recommendations .
The response started days before the storm , with FDOT giving consulting firms the first alert . As the impending strike became imminent , FDOT assigned each field inspection team specific roles . Immediately after the storm passed Brevard County the morning of October 7 , Ayres ’ crews mobilized to immediately assess infrastructure while the storm continued up the coast . The priority was to inspect infrastructure on major roads leading to barrier islands so they could be opened as soon as possible .
Despite forecasters predicting lower-than-average numbers of storms for the Atlantic , parts of the southeastern United States remain at risk . “ The Gulf of Mexico coast , especially central and eastern areas including all of Florida , will be the greatest areas of concern for direct and indirect impacts from tropical storms and hurricanes during the 2017 season ,” AccuWeather Hurricane Expert Dan Kottlowski said in a recent article .