There are several owners heading down to assist in the cleanup effort at Tortuga. Doug Smith is arriving Tuesday evening and will be the point of contact for the cleanup effort.
Please keep in mind that the area may be contaminated and as such will need to be disinfected. Doug will have details on that in coordination with Dale.
As Barb has posted debris collection will start Wednesday but before any Tortuga owned property can be discarded we have to determine what needs to have the insurance adjusters approval. In other words the adjuster may need to see the items we are claiming.
Volunteers cleaning garages.
Clean up has begun. In the garages. It’s quite a mess. This was sent to all owners last evening about the cleanup plans.
2024
Update: Aftermath of Hurricane Helene
Good evening owners,
Today, Owens Electric came out to evaluate the issue with respect to our power loss.
It took a while, but they concluded that fuses were the issue. They have ordered the type of fuses needed and new fuses were ordered via overnight delivery. We hope the fuses can be replaced tomorrow.
Florida elevator pumped the water out of the elevator pits today. I was told the smell of the water was extremely unpleasant. A technician will come once the power is back on to evaluate the conditions of the elevators.
Those of you that have cars parked in the garages, you need to call your insurance agent ASAP if you have not already done so. All cars reviewed so far are damaged beyond repair. If you have called your agent and you know when they are coming to tow the car, please email the office. It is taking a long time to get the cars out of the garage, and we want to manage the number of tows to ensure they are staggered. So far so good.
The clean-up of the garages starts tomorrow. The floodwater was not just salt water. It was contaminated with sewage, bacteria and chemicals.
The sludge on the garage floors and the water in the storage units is contaminated as stated. After 5 days, the floors are still slippery with sludge and the standing water in the storage units is starting to smell. We have opened a few storage cabinets and there has been approximately 3 feet of very nasty black water in the units. Anything that has been sitting in the black water is contaminated. Those items need to be thrown away. We need to open all cabinets as the water will sit, smell, bacteria will grow, and mold will develop. This is an unhealthy situation. The storage cabinets must be emptied of this black water. If you have a lock on your cabinet, we need to take it off and empty the water. If you want to email Tortuga with the combination, do so immediately please, or we will have to cut the locks off.
Obviously, we will save items such as kayaks, paddles, paddle boards, bikes, any items on higher shelves in the unit that was dry, or anything that was hanging from the ceiling.
This is not a process any owner wants to go through. We cannot wait for weeks for owners to arrive hoping to go through the units on their own time.
The floors and walls need to be power washed with disinfectant spray and so do any cabinets up to flood point if they are salvageable, and any of the Rubbermaid cabinets (or other brands) that are in pieces on the garage floor.
Items such as chairs, umbrellas, anything cloth, even play toys need to be discarded. It is very difficult to disinfect items such as these.
This is a public health issue and cannot be ignored.