Environment

Florida homes evacuated in wake of Fay

by Rob Peters | August 24, 2008 at 03:52 pm

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Tropical Storm Fay is still causing problems in Florida, where residents have begun to receive evacuation orders. The City of Debary ordered the evacuation of at least 180 homes this afternoon, according to local media.

Meanwhile, President Bush has declared four hard-hit counties as disaster areas--Brevard, Monroe, Okeechobee and St. Lucie. The designation makes funding available for emergency work and repairs.

The storm has caused 13 deaths in the US and 23 in Haiti and the Dominican Republic. See previous coverage here.

MIAMI (AP) -- The remnants of Tropical Storm Fay lingered Sunday, forcing residents in several parts of northern Florida to leave their homes as floodwaters rose.

Officials used boats to ferry people from homes in DeBary, 25 miles north of Orlando, where some streets were under four feet of water, and from several neighborhoods in and around Tallahassee.

"The water is very deep. It's already at everybody's door," said Debra Galloway, who lives in the Timber Lake subdivision just east of Tallahassee. She was still at home Sunday evening but had no power and said if the rain continued she would join neighbors who had already left by boat.

About 70 homes in DeBary were under an evacuation order after ponds spilled over. A handful of people were taken out by boat, while others were able to leave on their own, county emergency officials said.

Fay made landfall a record four times in Florida before it was downgraded to a tropical depression late Saturday. The storm caused plenty of flooding as it zigzagged across Florida for nearly a week.