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As powerful Hurricane Michael closes in on Gulf Coast, officials worry about 'hardheads' who won't leave

Karl Etters
Tallahassee Democrat
Akef Elkhatteeb, manager of Hometown Deli in Carrabelle, Florida, boards up the windows of the gas station Oct. 9, 2018, in preparation for Hurricane Michael.

ST. GEORGE ISLAND, Fla. — Scores of people are refusing to leave mandatory evacuation areas in the path of powerful Category 4 Hurricane Michael, a decision that officials warn could be deadly.

Two people are refusing to leave Dog Island, a barrier island accessible only by ferry or private boat about 50 miles southwest of Tallahassee. About 10 people are staying at Alligator Point, 40 miles south of Tallahassee.

Another 50 are staying here on St. George Island, about 70 miles southwest of the state capital.

“As of now we're staying, but that may change at any time,” Roger Malone said as he walked his dogs Pete, Sally and Reese onto the beach. He and his partner, Angela Ferguson; her son; her sister; and their three dogs are extending their weeklong vacation on the island in Apalachicola Bay.

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In front of them, the Gulf of Mexico churned and frothed with energy from the approaching storm.

“I looked at the weather and didn’t see anything about a hurricane and now here we are,” said the Decatur, Tennessee, resident.

Michael grew into a powerful Category 4 hurricane early Wednesday and at midmorning had maximum sustained winds of 145 mph. It is expected to dump 4 to 8 inches of rain here with localized totals as high as 12 inches.

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“We told them, 'It's time to leave or put on a life jacket,' ” said Pamela Brownell, Franklin County emergency management director. Bridges throughout Franklin County closed Tuesday night as tropical storm force winds neared the coast.

Condo managers on Pensacola Beach about 150 miles to the northwest were trying to decide whether to shut off water and power in advance of the storm.

Roger Malone of Decatur, Tennessee. walks Oct. 9, 2018, toward the beach on St. George Island, Florida, ahead of Hurricane Michael. Malone and his partner, Angela Ferguson, chose not to  evacuate despite a mandatory  order for all of Franklin County.

"We're going to shut down,'' said Jonathan Watson, maintenance manager at the Emerald Dolphin. "But we can't make anyone leave. That's against the law."

About a dozen residents told management they wanted to stay put. Condominiums and hotels were facing the same discussions across Santa Rosa Island, a 40-mile-long barrier island that includes Pensacola Beach, and visitors seemed split on whether to head inland or stay on the beach.

"We're staying,'' said George Kirn of Chicago. He and his wife, Christine, were making their third trip to Pensacola Beach and are staying at a hotel on the beach. "It's just Mother Nature."

Christine Kirn said they are prepared to go without power and water for a short period.

"If we lose power, we have a little stove to cook with,'' she said.

By Tuesday afternoon, much of 28-mile-long St. George Island was deserted. Most people who live in Apalachicola, right across the bridge, remained.

Malone said he’d spoken with locals who warned that the storm surge could cover St. George Island, which sits just a few feet above sea level.

Forecasters expect a 9- to 12-foot storm surge, and emergency teams won't be able to respond until the storm passes, which may not be until Thursday morning.

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The house they’re staying in sits about three rows back from the beach. On Tuesday, Malone watched the mass exodus off the island.

“We’ve seen a lot of them getting out of here by the droves,” he said, noting that when locals leave he sees a likely reason to be concerned. He bought $300 worth of groceries to ride out the storm.

“I guess people think we're crazy for staying,” he said Tuesday. “I hope it doesn’t get that bad. But if they close the bridge in the morning, then I guess were a done deal.”

Gov. Rick Scott made a stop in Franklin County Tuesday afternoon and commented on reports that people were deciding to ride out the storm.

“I think a lot of people have seen 12 inches of rain in a short period of time. A lot of people have seen 110 mph winds," said Scott, voicing his frustration. "I don’t think a lot of people have seen 8 to 12 feet of storm surge. That’s deadly.”

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The biggest dangers from any hurricane are wind, storm surge, flooding and tornadoes.

Franklin County deputies went nearly door to door to encourage people to leave, Sheriff A.J. Smith said. 

Double red beach-warning flags fly Oct. 9, 2018, over Navarre Beach, Florida, near Pensacola.

“I think a lot of them know this can be a deadly storm,” he said. “There are people who still stay though. There always are the hardheads that will stay. They’re really putting their lives in danger.”

Emily Lobe is staying in her house in The Villages in Lanark, Florida, on the Gulf coast near Dog Island. She lives in the highest elevation in Franklin County.

Tuesday she bought ice and helped move sandbags in front of the doors of the Lanark Market.

She’s grown up there. Storms are nothing new.

She spent the past few days moving furniture indoors and securing hurricane shutters. She said she had been monitoring the storm closely but decided to stay.

The house she lives in was built in 1942.

“Same as I always do. I just prepare and hunker down,” she said. “It’s just a hit or miss.”

Malinda Dempsey is staying put in Apalachicola, just three blocks from the Apalachicola River that is expected to crest a possible 12 feet.

“I’m very anxious and nervous,” she said at about 5:30 a.m. as she watched sideways rain and debris blow down the street.

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She, her son Wesley and his uncle decided to stay. Their house sits on the highest point in the small, coastal fishing town. Dempsey said in her 46 years she has left once for a hurricane when she was 12 years-old.

“We’ve gone through storms like this all our lives,” she said. “These houses have been here a very, very long time and they’ve seen many storms. Its just the surge I’m worried about. Not the wind. No the lightning. It’s the water.”

Marcie Thompson of Carrabelle, Florida, about 5 miles down the coast from Lanark, decided her mobile home was too close to the Carrabelle River and surrounded by too many large pine trees to stay. She packed up her seven kids Tuesday and headed to Bristol, about 50 miles inland.

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She lived through Hurricane Kate’s direct hit on the Tallahassee area in 1985 but decided Michael was not one to take a chance on. She sent her grandfather to Tallahassee in an ambulance and spent the morning getting ready and packing supplies.

Thompson decided to leave as forecasts for Michael continued to paint a grim picture for Florida’s Gulf Coast.

Her main concern after Michael passes?

“If I have a house or not,” she said while filling up gas.

Contributing: Pensacola (Fla.) News Journal. Follow Karl Etters on Twitter: @KarlEtters

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