- October 30, 2024
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Driving around Longboat Key three weeks after Hurricane Milton, the debris piles along Gulf of Mexico Drive are going down.
That's thanks to a unique and invaluable sight on the island: Officers from Miami Beach, Jacksonville and other agencies across the state.
The Town of Longboat Key and its police department sent requests to the Florida Police Chiefs Association and the State Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to supplement the police department with more officers.
Those requests were met.
Within days of the state’s response, the number of debris trucks on Longboat Key went from less than 10 to more than 40 trucks, according to Town Manager Howard Tipton.
And the extra officers were there to escort the trucks and direct traffic on Longboat.
Revolving patrols from different jurisdictions were sent by the Florida Police Chiefs Association. Officers from departments like Miccosukee PD, Biscayne Park, Opa-Locka, Miami Shores and Miami-Dade will be on Longboat Key to provide extra support.
“We’ve given them a mission to keep the scavengers out, keep the illegal dumping off the island,” Turner told commissioners at the Oct. 21 commission workshop.
Scavengers on the island have become a problem on the island as Turner said they are getting a little “rambunctious.”
“Over the last couple of days, it’s become more of a problem,” Turner said at the meeting. “Now we’re actually getting burglaries and trespassing, people going beyond the pile on the road and into private property. It’s just hard to control.”
Stopping illegal dumping was also a priority for these officers.
Properties that abut Gulf of Mexico Drive are allowed to dump debris into the piles along GMD, but properties on side streets are not allowed to bring debris to the GMD piles. Doing so could result in fines or a felony charge, according to the town.
“It is a felony to illegally dump anywhere on Longboat Key. We have town code violations for scavengers and anyone else removing garbage from Longboat Key that’s not permitted to,” Turner said.
Turner said that voluntary compliance is the first goal. Officers will educate people about the violations first before writing a citation, but citations or charges could be pursued if the issues continue.
The extra support from the Florida Police Chiefs Association came due to an existing agreement the Longboat Key Police Department is a part of. It allows for participating departments to send extra officers to jurisdictions in need.
This means the Longboat Key Police Department could be asked to supply additional officers or patrol vessels to other participating jurisdictions in the event of other emergencies.
More officers were also sent as aid from the State Emergency Operations Center. The State of Florida has a commitment to clean up Gulf of Mexico Drive, which is a state-owned highway.
Tipton said the town had an agreement that the state would make at least two passes of Gulf of Mexico Drive to pick up construction and debris material and sand.
This agreement produced a crew of at least 50 officers and firefighters from the Jacksonville area sent by the State Emergency Operations Center focused on traffic control.
“They’re here until everything is gone,” Turner said. “I’m told they’re here for the duration, so there’s a lot of help.”
Members of the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department commanded the staging area at Whitney Plaza for several days.
Dump trucks lined up and waited for an assignment. The Jacksonville crew received an address for the next cleanup site and then would share the address with both the dump truck and a police officer from one of the various outside departments.
With the additional support came about 40 dump trucks on some days. The increased traffic from dump trucks required some balancing from the Jacksonville crews that directed everyone.
But after five days into the full-force effort, Revis Coltrane, a firefighter with the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department, said the work being put in by all the crews was starting to show.
"It was quite a mess, and they've done a lot of work," Coltrane said.
The crews worked 12-hour days, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. One of the biggest challenges Coltrane mentioned was that the dump trucks had to travel about an hour and 45 minutes to an off-island dump site once the trucks were filled.
Still, the crew transported about 100-120 loads per day, according to Coltrane.
While the Longboat Key Police Department opened its doors to the additional officers for anything they may need, the department alone couldn't hold over 50 people to stay the night.
The extra support had to stay near Tampa during their time on Longboat Key and commute every morning.
Toward mid-key, there is a debris collection site that is operated by one of the town's debris contractors. Extra police around that area have been helpful, too, Tipton said.
"They've been working until midnight to try to help get that pile down, and it's been nice to have the extra police presence to help support them," Tipton said.
Tipton said the request for additional support was extended through the first week of November. Officers will be directing traffic and may need to block one lane of GMD for debris collection trucks to safely maneuver.
That said, residents can expect traffic delays during the intense clean-up process in the coming days. A release sent by the Town of Longboat Key on Oct. 22 advised residents to be patient and allow for extra travel time.
