Online resources, videos available to help
This is National Hurricane Preparedness Week and the perfect time for residents to take steps to prepare their landscaping and for those in gated communities to be sure their associations are ready, too.
Don’t wait until a storm is forecast to impact Lee County. Take this weekend to prune any trees or shrubs that could damage your home or pool cage.
Survey the property for any items that would become a projectile during a storm. Secure them or set them out for disposal next week. Keep in mind that typically garbage collections are suspended 24 hours prior to a hurricane making landfall in our area.
Yard trimmings can be set out in waste cans, paper lawn and leaf bags, or tied with cotton string into bundles weighing 50 pounds or less. Palm fronds do not need to be tied if they are stacked neatly at the curb in piles weighing less than 50 pounds.
Residents can take paint, fertilizer, pesticides or other chemicals to the facility for safe and responsible disposal. It’s an easy, drive-through process available to all residents at no additional charge. Businesses need to make an appointment to drop off chemicals during the monthly business collection. The Household Chemical Waste drop-off location is open each weekday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and the first Saturday of each month from 8 a.m. to noon at 6441 Topaz Court in Fort Myers.
Professional property managers and residential homeowners’ association (HOA) presidents also should take steps now to protect their community in the event of a hurricane or other declared major disaster in Lee County.
FEMA regulations require that private or gated communities have a current Right of Entry and Indemnification form on file with Lee County before any disaster debris recovery crews are allowed to enter the community. Lee County has an easy, online process for submitting the paperwork, which must be completed annually.
Forms are available at https://leegis.leegov.com/ROE for communities located within unincorporated Lee County. Lee County Solid Waste asks all HOAs to take time to complete the form prior to the start of each hurricane season.
The county’s debris contractor is prohibited from entering and collecting storm debris from any community without a current Right of Entry form on file.
The Right of Entry would only be utilized as necessary during the recovery period following a declared State of Local Emergency. Questions can be directed to Lee County Solid Waste at 239-533-8000.
For more information on preparing property for a storm, visit www.leegov.com/solidwaste/hurricane and also www.leegov.com/hurricane. At the latter landing page, you will find a series of informational videos as well as the county’s All Hazards Guide. The videos and guide go into detail about what to do before, during and after a storm. Helpful tips and resources are included, such as how to prepare a hurricane kit and how to find the nearest shelter. Lee County Public Safety encourages HOAs and other neighborhood community groups to consider scheduling an event to watch the materials with neighbors.
To receive updates from Lee County Government, sign up for the newsletter here: www.leegov.com/resources/newsletters. Follow Lee County Government on Facebook, www.facebook.com/leecountyflbocc.
