HERNANDO BEACH - When law enforcement officers surprised weary coastal residents, shouting last-minute evacuation warnings about 6 a.m. Monday, Bill and Joan Maglidt knew exactly what to do.
The Maglidts rolled out of bed and fled a few blocks to Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9236 on Shoal Line Boulevard, rather than a county-sanctioned shelter.
"I opened this place at 7 a.m. I don't care what the "po-lice' tell me," said Bill Maglidt, commander of the Hernando Beach VFW, which bustled with smokers, drinkers and breakfast-seeking refugees - despite an evacuation order that remained in effect until 2 p.m.
The order had been issued at 4 a.m. after the downgraded, slow-moving Frances threatened to bury the coast under several feet of water as the rain pounded during high tide.
Originally, officials had thought the coast would be safe, because the storm was supposed to move northwest into the Gulf of Mexico during the early morning hours, which coincided with low tide.
However, the storm moved more slowly than anticipated, and officials feared it would bring a coastal surge of 4 to 8 feet, coinciding with high tide about 7 a.m. County officials issued the mandatory coastal evacuation order at 4 a.m. for residents of zones A and B, which includes most of the area west of U.S. 19.
Although 2,200 residents were affected by the order, only a handful made their way to county shelters opened early Monday morning.
"A lot of them may have gone to family and friends' homes, or, you never know, they may have just decided to stay," said county spokeswoman Sue Rupe, explaining the lack of adherence to the late evacuation effort.
As it turned out, the anticipated surge never came. Parts of Bayport, Pine Island, Hernando Beach and Aripeka experienced minor flooding, with less than a foot of water covering low-lying areas.
Water rose in ditches and canals, as well as in the Weeki Wachee River. A little before noon, rising water at Pine Island caused sheriff's deputies to close access to the island for a several hours. But few coastal homes appeared in danger of becoming waterlogged.
"We're in good shape, although we got a lot of rain," said Hernando Beach South resident Frank Anderson, who sent his wife and kids to stay with friends in Spring Hill while he kept an eye on the house Monday. "Today's been far worse than yesterday."
Most residents stayed home and ignored the evacuation order, choosing to wait and see how high the water would rise.
"It's been coming down all morning, but we figured we'd be pretty safe here," said Wally Carnley of Bayport, whose stilt house is on high ground. His wife, Laura, broke her leg recently, and he didn't want to move her. "I'm just hoping it'll clear up in a few hours so we don't have to worry so much."
A few residents said they had no idea the coast was under an evacuation order.
"I didn't hear any evacuation order, but where am I going to go?" Paul Sharkey said as he sipped his second beer of the morning at the VFW.
Sharkey was taking a break from his octogenarian parents, who had evacuated to his Hernando Beach home from Stuart. "I took them out of the storm and brought them into the storm."
The coast weathered the storm mostly unscathed, with wind and rain damaging a handful of rooftops, fences and mailboxes. The worst storm damage occurred a few feet south of the Hernando County line, when a large oak tree uprooted and crushed a house in Aripeka. Nobody lived there, neighbors said.
In addition to Fox Chapel Middle School, which was the closest shelter already open, the county opened three other shelters early Monday morning for coastal residents: Westside Elementary School, the Heather Community Center and New Beginnings Life Center.
Westside, on Applegate Drive, had drawn three evacuees by 10 a.m.: Sal and Linda Calcavecchia and her mother, Sophie Gutterson.
"I can't believe nobody is here," said Linda Calcavecchia, whose son called her at 3:30 a.m. to warn her that the tide was coming into Hernando Beach with the tropical storm. "I think a lot of people did not leave because (officials) did not say anything about a storm surge."
Times staff writer Duane Bourne contributed to this report.
