CAPE CORAL, Fla. — Hurricane shutters are still up on some homes in Cape Coral and the Cape Coral Fire Department says it is posing risks for first responders.
Fox 4's Bella Line speaks with the Cape Coral Fire Department about the risks:
Fire Battalion Chief Eric Hawkins said shutters significantly slow firefighters' ability to enter homes during emergencies.
"It's going to take us much more time to get inside and be able to properly assess where the fire is and to put that fire out," Hawkins said.
The issue of how long people are keeping their shutters up for was presented to the Cape Coral City Council during Wednesday's Committee of the Whole meeting, where officials discussed implementing restrictions on how long residents can keep shutters up after a storm passes.
Some residents expressed concerns about potential regulations, arguing they infringe on property rights.
"It is a violation of homeowners private property rights to make them take down their storm shutters, even if they want to put them up for safety or security especially for our snowbirds who are out of the city for most of the year," said one resident.
Another Cape Coral homeowner shared similar concerns.
"I'm concerned that it puts a burden on those of us who might not be here during that time," she said.
Several council members appeared to side with residents on the issue.
"Our citizens, other citizens around the globe, we can't prohibit them from taking their own life into their own hands," said City Council Member Bill Steinke.
Fire officials noted that other Florida cities have already implemented similar restrictions. Port St. Lucie, for example, requires residents to remove hurricane shutters within 14 days after a storm.
The Cape Coral Fire Chief explained that firefighters treat all structures as potentially occupied, meaning shuttered homes require additional manpower and potentially put first responders at risk.
"If we have residents that spend time outside at a different state and they want to leave that up for security reasons, I can understand their idea for it, but it's going to prevent us to be able to get into their house in case something happens," Hawkins said.
According to the Cape Coral Fire Chief, Florida Building and Fire Codes currently state that temporary storm shutters should only be in place while there is an active storm threat, meaning residents with shutters still up may already be in violation of existing regulations.
The City Council has requested further discussion on the matter at a future Committee of the Whole meeting.
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