Three storms were worse but none scored direct hit
By DIANE STEINLE
Published September 8, 2004
Stress as the storm approached, followed by days of boredom as it dithered, appear to be the worst consequences of Tropical Storm Frances for most residents of North Pinellas.
We got lucky - again.
"Lucky" may not be a word that would be used by a handful of residents of Oldsmar's Shore Drive at the top of Old Tampa Bay, who are dealing with the smelly aftermath of having several inches of bay water in their homes.
"Lucky" probably isn't on the tip of the tongue of residents of the Scottish Towers condominiums in Dunedin. Thirty of the 70 units in that complex on the Dunedin Causeway are not livable now because the wind ripped off parts of the roof - a roof replaced just over a year ago - and allowed driving rains to cascade into the living quarters. There was similar damage to a handful of units at another nearby condo complex.
However, for the most part, Frances delivered to North Pinellas only what one would expect from a good blow. Flimsy metal structures like carports and sheds fell apart. Here and there a weakened tree fell, but the wind mostly left a carpet of small limbs, twigs and leaves on yards. Some business signs twisted in the wind. Rain found its way into buildings with leaky roofs. And the power went out in some areas where power lines were lashed by the wind or by thrashing tree limbs that had grown too close to the lines.
In the 20 years I have lived and worked as a journalist in North Pinellas, this definitely was not the worst I have seen.
What was worse?
Well, Tropical Storm Josephine in 1996. That storm formed in the Gulf of Mexico in early October and wandered toward the west coast of Florida. People were pretty nonchalant about the mild little storm - until it intensified to nearly 70 mph within a couple of hours and headed for the Florida Panhandle.
In the backwash of Josephine, which never came closer than 200 miles to Pinellas, storm surge along the gulf swamped waterfront homes with a foot or more of saltwater. Gulf Boulevard was covered with sand from the beaches. All of the bridges across Tampa Bay and the bridges to the Pinellas beaches were closed. The streets of Clearwater Beach flooded with water that was hip-deep in places. Streets around Tarpon Springs' bayous flooded, as did three dozen Sponge Docks stores. A radio tower in Largo threatened to topple. On Sand Key, dozens of cars were destroyed by saltwater. Water was 4 feet deep in some motels.
That was worse than Frances.
So was the no-name storm of March 13, 1993, which some weather experts later dubbed the "storm of the century." That violent storm swamped many of the same areas flooded three years later by Josephine, plus others, and the water rose so fast that people had no time to evacuate. In North Pinellas alone, almost 70 homes had major damage and more than 900 had minor damage, according to numbers compiled by the American Red Cross. Thirty-two mobile homes were destroyed. Two months afterward, 70 Pinellas families who lost their homes in the storm with no name were still living in temporary shelter.
That was worse than Frances.
And there was Hurricane Elena during Labor Day weekend in 1985. That storm caused the first countywide evacuation in Pinellas history, flooded coastal and bayside properties, knocked down lots of trees and power lines, ripped countless business signs out of the ground and sent them flying, broke windows in office buildings, threw debris into streets, and left North Pinellas looking soaked and bedraggled.
That was worse, too.
During North Pinellas' preparations for Hurricane Frances, I heard several people comment that they were "here when Hurricane Elena hit" and they did fine, so they didn't expect much trouble from Frances. It is worth repeating again and again that Hurricane Elena did not "hit" Pinellas County. It stayed 80 to 100 miles out in the gulf and wobbled around for three days before going elsewhere.
Tropical Storm Josephine didn't make a direct hit on Pinellas, either. It went ashore in the Panhandle. Hurricane Charley made a sharp right turn and went ashore in Charlotte Harbor. Hurricane Frances declined to Tropical Storm Frances while it was still well east of Tampa and then turned northwest and out into the gulf. It didn't "hit" Pinellas, either.
No Pinellas resident who experienced these named storms - Elena, Josephine and Frances - should assume they know what a hurricane would be like if it made a direct hit here. We haven't been hit yet. We have been lucky.
