With Hurricane Ian barreling toward Florida, Columbia County residents are getting into full storm-preparedness mode.
While the Columbia County Public Works Department was scheduled to open sandbag stations at 7 a.m. Tuesday morning, employees were greeted by a crowd at the Southside Sports Complex at 6:15 a.m. People were sitting at the sandpile, waiting.
Juan and Marie Santana were working on filling sandbags in the self-serve section — county employees and an inmate crew were assisting at another pile to help fill the 15-bag limit per vehicle. While Juan used a shovel to fill the bags, Marie topped them off and tied them up.
He said they had been at the sandpile filling sandbags for about an hour. As of 11 a.m. Tuesday, more than 225 people had already visited the Southside location — the county also had sandbag sites at the Fort White Community Center and the Public Works department — and a line was still developing in the parking lot.
“I moved into the area and I live in a flood area, so I’m getting the sandbags just to prepare myself and the house,” he said. “We’re doing 15 sandbags for ourself and 15 for our neighbor.”
Santana said his neighbor is 90 years old and his wife is 87 years old and he and Marie wanted to help them by preparing sandbags for them.
“When we finish off here, if some other neighbor needs help, I’ll come back,” Santana said. “I try to help everybody.”
Wardell Walton was working on filling sandbags by just standing on the pile and pushing the sand into the bag without the use of a shovel.
“I just got out here, I’m helping my dad,” he said, as he continued to push sand into the bags with his hands. “It’s a lot quicker. I’m kind of used to it because I work at a warehouse.”
Walton said coming out and filling sandbags as well as making storm preparations is normal procedure in this area.
“Being a Floridian it doesn’t really bother you because you’re just used to it. You kind of adapt to it,” he said.
Lila Pasternak and her husband were at the site where aid was being offered to people filling sandbags. She took the unusual technique of sitting on the bags to fill them and to tie the bags.
“My husband did the hard work,” she said, noting they were at the site for less than five minutes. “They gave us 15 bags and said we could come back for more if we had to and we do appreciate it because it does not cost. I thought we were going to have to go to Wal Mart and get some, so I’m glad this is free.”
Pasternak appeared happy she and her husband opted to use the sand pile where they were aided by other people.
“Filling up the bags is easy, loading them up in the truck is what we really needed assistance with and we got that assistance and we appreciate it,” she said.