CAPE CORAL, Fla. — People living in Cape Coral construction zones shared concerns with Fox 4 about heavy rain coming to the area because of Hurricane Dorian.
Jenny Peterson has lived in Southwest Florida since 2012. She said she’s gotten used to hurricane preparations, but she’s still adjusting to the city’s Utilities Extension Project (UEP), which started in her neighborhood in July.
“We’ve had cars get stuck in the mud, and not be able to get out. The crews have had to come and dig them out, so if it gets to flooding, it can be kind of messy,” she said.
That was Steve Ball’s car that got stuck. But, he said city workers showed up right on time.
“The city took care of me, as far as getting me towed out, and they actually, one gentleman followed me to the car wash and paid for a car wash,” he said.
Peterson said with Hurricane Dorian brining heavy rain our way this weekend, she feels a little better knowing the city made changes to the construction site on her block.
“Our roads since they put sort of a top coat down, will be fine, but there are other roads around her that haven’t gotten that yet, that could be a little bit messy,” she said.
That prime coat as contractors call it will eventually get to all the neighborhoods that have the UEP. In the meantime, the city said contractors are on call this weekend for storm related road work and clean up.
In a statement to Fox 4, the city of cape coral says they’re planning ahead to prevent rain related problems:
“The weather is being closely monitored and preparation efforts have been discussed with the UEP contractors. The City will require contractors to have all roads properly graded and stabilized for heavy amounts of rain. Signs have to be inspected to ensure they are secured and erosion control must be checked. Additionally, the contractors and their staff are required to be on call for road maintenance and/or cleanup work in the event that we receive significant wind and/or rainfall.”
