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Hurricane Katrina

1-million without power in S. Florida

By CANDACE RONDEAUX nd JUSTIN GEORGE
Published August 26, 2005

	Projected path Hurricane Guide Ten things you can do to prepare

FORT LAUDERDALE - They stocked up on gas, loaded up on flashlights and headed indoors.

But mostly, South Florida residents shrugged off Hurricane Katrina on Thursday, despite warnings from emergency officials to prepare for the worst.

"There's nothing you can do, just keep it low stress and take it as it is," David Iannucci said as he struggled to squeeze a new generator into the back of his sedan.

By Thursday night, at least 1-million Florida Power and Light customers in the region were without power. About 1,900 workers were ready to deal with downed power lines and other damage.

"Katrina may not be a major storm but she still poses a threat for flooding, for property damage and for somebody to be hurt," said Broward County Sheriff Ken Jenne.

Two people in Broward were killed by falling trees, officials said. Palm Beach reported no injuries or deaths.

Along Fort Lauderdale's Sunrise Boulevard, in the heart of the city's tourist section, a few dozen daring drivers picked their way through wind-swept streets and past broken stop lights as Katrina made landfall.

Some swerved to avoid rows of palm trees, ripped out at the root by 90 mph gusts. Others squeezed past downed power lines that snapped out at them along the roadways. Several drivers simply left their cars on the roadside and ran for shelter.

Nearby, hundreds of stranded tourists hunkered down in hotels along Fort Lauderdale's tony beach strip, as waves thundered ashore. Power outages darkened many of the beachfront's most upscale addresses, leaving travelers and residents to sweat out the storm by candlelight.

Emergency officials worried about flooding from the slow-moving storm, which was expected to dump up to a foot of rain on the area.

Oakland Park schoolteacher Carolyn Steenhoek, 54, recalled the nightmares from Hurricane Irene six years ago. "We had water up to our knees back then," Steenhoek said. "If it gets high enough it could flood our carport and our whole house."

Earlier in the day, as strong winds buckled trees, residents of Plantation seemed mostly worried about gassing up their cars. At a Shell station near the town center, customers lined up for high-priced premium gas after all the regular gas was drained.

"It's been busy like this for the last 24 hours," clerk Lynne Miller said. "I haven't had a chance to breathe since I started."

Evacuation shelters, however, were mostly quiet.

Broward issued only a voluntary evacuation order, and some 800 people showed up at 12 emergency shelters. Palm Beach County issued a mandatory evacuation order for mobile homes and barrier islands in the southern part of the county; about 700 people turned up at nine shelters.

Miami Beach was largely deserted.

But Frank Lavin, a designer who lives in an oceanfront condo, had to walk his dog, Sofia. Lavin said he had plans for Thursday night.

"Cocktail party. That's all we can do."

Times staff writer Tamara Lush contributed to this report.

[Last modified August 26, 2005, 01:37:18]