The tornado watches started firing off very early this morning in advance of more strong storms approaching Tampa Bay. Keep ahead of the severe weather with the Dove app at @1055thedove and the latest from our partners at 10 Tampa Bay Weather. Once these storms pass the rain chances drop.
Pinellas County is giving residents a chance to get ahead of the storms by offering free, prefilled sandbags The site is at the Pinellas County Household Hazardous Waster Facility on 109th Avenue North and will be open all year from 6 am to 6 pm Monday through Friday, and 7 am to 5 pm Saturdays. For more storm preps keep the Dove Hurricane Guide handy.
Because one Manatee County commissioner objected to the Sunshine Skyway being lit specifically for Pride Month, it won’t happen this year for St Pete Pride in June. The Florida Department of Transportation policy is that any light display requests must be approved by all three county commissions since the bridge runs through Manatee, Hillsborough and Pinellas counties,. Manatee Commission Chairman Mike Rahn was the only person to object. So now FDOT will use red, white and blue lights from Memorial Day through Labor Day. This change means other groups who had their causes highlighted like Mental Health, Autism and Sickle Cell will be left out. There’s more on the story from the Tampa Bay Times.
Poison being used outside homes in Tampa Bay are being blamed for the deaths of animals and birds. The secondary poisoning comes when vermin eat the rodenticide, and are in turn eaten by birds of prey and other wildlife. Florida Fish and Wildlife caution us to not use those and find a more natural way to control pests.