Helene aftermath in Sanibel

While much of the water has receded, the Sanibel Causeway was closed for several hours Friday morning because city crews were trying to clean up the flooding and debris.

There was bumper-to-bumper traffic until a little before noon when the causeway reopened and people were able to get on without a hurricane pass.

City leaders really want people to know they are in recovery mode, so if you don’t have to be on the island, don’t come.

We spoke to a man who hunkered down and watched Hurricane Helene pass by. He told us he was nervous because Hurricane Ian left him with unforgettable damage, and once he saw the wind from Helene pick up, he had flashbacks.

“I stayed up. I was walking around. There were a lot of people that don’t need to walk around once that power was out. Bad people come out. I had a four-wheeler, drove that around, and checked out friends’ properties. Fortunately, we had our cell phone signal that was cool,” he said.

Waste Management will pick up trash for our neighbors in Sanibel on Monday. That is because of flooding in the area.

Storm debris and storm-impacted items should be put on the curb and separated from regular trash.