All orders for mandatory and voluntary evacuation have been rescinded for this area. It was a wild night with lots of tornado warnings and upwards of 60 mile wind gusts battering the windows.

I am fortunate to have power. Once again we have been blessed in the St. Pete Beach area. High water, flooding, debris on the roadways and some power outages is all we have. The winds are still providing strong gusts as far south as Key West and Ft. Myers. Caution will be the name for today until the high tides come and go later this afternoon.

Schools and most businesses remain closed as they wait to see what happens throughout the day as the water is pushed ashore. Feeder Bands, southwest off our coasts, may add to the flooding. I am on the fourth floor and as long as I remain safe and sound here the danger for my home has passed.

An unmanned construction barge broke loose around 2:30 this morning and hit into the side of the Howard Franklin Bridge. It appears the damage is mostly cosmetic but one northbound lane is closed.

The worst side effect from the storm in our area so far has been the soothe sayers. They are saying that because the Gulf is so warm this early that more storms are likely to come into our area. They are fast to point out that if there had been a massive evacuation the lane closure on the Howard Franklin would have put many people in jeopardy trying to leave the area. Hmmm, is it a requirement to think in terms of doom and gloom if you want to cover the news? Is it a boring story to celebrate that no one has been hurt and so far there has been no major damage?

I will heed the request to stay off the roads today so the power company and emergency workers can do their work. My heart goes out to those who are suffering from the flooding and those who live north and are still to receive the wrath from Alberto.

Thank you to all who took time to check-in and make sure I was safe. Your kindness is met with heartfelt appreciation.