Cameras offline in Cape Coral seven months after Hurricane Ian

Cameras wiped out by Ian are still down more than seven months after Hurricane Ian. There are 90 traffic cameras in the area of Southeast 47th Terrace in Cape Coral that need repairs after the utility boxes were filled with water during the storm surge.

As anyone could imagine, this causes a laundry list of problems for Cape Coral while they bounce back from the storm.

The highest priority for the city is installing a temporary camera while the city works on a permanent solution. The cameras that need replacing include domed surveillance units to street-level cameras. And some people are concerned, especially after the shooting in downtown Fort Myers.

Nakisha Camacho is the owner of Hair Artistry in Cape Coral.

“We need them up,” Camacho said.

Camacho even opened up a barber supply store next door, and that’s why she wants those cameras back on.

“The only thing we think about when we’re leaving or somebody watching us when we bring inventory. When the girls are leaving, when money drops, that makes a big difference to have that security around us. God forbid we can’t pick it up in-house,” Camacho said.

Cape Coral city leaders talked about the camera outages along SE 47th Terrace as part of its CRA discussions from Tuesday. So they know, especially in light of recent events, the city has to get those 90 or so cameras up and running.

“One of the things you said is one of my biggest concerns, especially after the shootings in downtown Fort Myers last week,” Camacho said.

The city said to bring power back to all systems, including cameras, license plate readers, and grid routers, will cost $90,000. And once power is restored, they can see if any individual systems are damaged.

“It’s a little overwhelming, but at least they’re working. Doing their best to get it back in order,” Camacho said.

Other business owners WINK News spoke to said they’re not worried. They know the city will get them fixed. Cape Coral said its timeline for the replacements to be installed is six to eight weeks.