CLEARWATER -- Hurricane Idalia has made landfall well to the north, but Pinellas and other coastal counties in the Tampa Bay area and north are dealing with rising water from storm surge.
Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri says he's closed off access to the barrier islands, which include Pinellas beaches, because high water and sand have made roads impassable. He won't allow anyone on the barrier islands until water recedes. Gualtieri says flooding will also be a problem on the east side of the county near Tampa Bay. Currently, the Howard Frankland Bridge, the Gandy Bridge, and the Sunshine Skyway bridge are closed. A flood watch is in effect for Pinellas and most other coastal counties through Thursday morning.
It's not just the beaches. Problems are reported on the west side of the county facing the Intracoastal Waterway. Alternate US 19 is closed in stretches from Tarpon Springs through Dunedin. More than 50 roads are reported flooded in the county. Problems are expected to worsen through high tide this afternoon, especially on the east side of the county facing Tampa Bay.
As of 10 a.m., around 22,000 Pinellas residents are without power. Duke Energy spokesman Jeff Baker says crews from the Midwest are staging at Tropicana Field and are moving out to fix outages, working 16-hour shifts.
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