LAKELAND, Fla. — Hurricane Sally dumped months worth of rain into northwest Florida, in a matter of hours.
And that weather left a Lakeland official stuck in the Panhandle. Lakeland’s Chamber of Commerce President Corey Skeates traveled to Fort Walton Beach for a work conference.
“The rain has been the biggest thing here,” Skeates said.
What You Need To Know
- Lakeland’s Chamber of Commerce President Corey Skeates was stranded in Panhandle during Hurricane Sally
- Skeates was in Fort Walton Beach for a conference
- PHOTOS: Hurricane Sally's Wreckage, Damage in Panhandle
The conference ended up being canceled.
“We had masks, hand sanitizers, stayed socially distanced, we thought we were fully prepared for everything that could come based upon coronavirus and then we wind up dealing with a hurricane.”
The Brooks and Marler bridges into Fort Walton Beach were shut down as a safety precaution. This left a number of people stuck in place.
"The night before, at about 4 a.m. we got an alert that it had turned east and was coming towards us,” he said. "At that point we were on the island and had nowhere we could go.”
Hurricane Sally has since been downgraded to a tropical depression and Skeates has been able to make his way back home.
“We weren’t sure if there was going to be flooding that was going to block the roads but as of the morning the bridges are open and we can get home.”