Marco Island, Naples, Collier County expected to see heavy rainfall this weekend

Heavy rain and strong winds could hit Southwest Florida this weekend, but that’s not stopping Tim and Laurie Herman from enjoying their Friday beach day.

“You know that those are conservative numbers. So, usually, you get some guests that are a lot stronger than that,” said Tim.

“Bring it on,” added Laurie.

Florida is under a state of emergency, but people don’t seem too concerned.

“We have food, more food and dessert. We’re good, and ice cream. So just make it a card game day or domino’s day or something inside,” Laurie said.

They said they have what they need, including food, water and gas; they agree that the weather in Florida is always unpredictable.

“There was another tropical storm that went by then same time a year that we were here, and on the 20th floor, you can actually see the water moving in the toilets,” Tim explained. “So, it was strong enough to be able to sway the building a little bit.”

“We think this is unlikely to be an evacuation situation,” said Greg Folley.

Although the beach was packed, Marco Island is also under a tropical storm warning, so WINK News asked city council member and resident Greg Folley what they are telling people ahead of the potential storm.

“Obviously don’t drive into flooded areas, and all kinds of numbers to call in the event of an emergency, whether it’s power or emergency services, and we have high water vehicles, a number of them in town to be able to deal with the flood situation if we have it,” Folley said.

“I haven’t been through a Florida hurricane yet, but being that we have been flooded through a Florida tropical storm. It doesn’t seem to be too concerning, except for the fact that we won’t be able to go to the beach for a couple of days,” said Tim.

The Naples area could be in for heavy rainfall this weekend as well with this system. Collier County crews are out working to clear roadside swales, drains and removing debris to help prevent flooding.