We are monitoring the National Hurricane Center’s latest advisories for Tropical Storm Idalia. This storm is expected to strengthen into a major hurricane, with Category 2 wind speed probabilities and hazardous impacts extending from Florida to the Carolinas. Also, with any tropical storm or hurricane, there is a possibility for tornadoes to develop. Your safety and well-being are our top priority, and we encourage you to follow your local advisories and monitor all warnings from local officials throughout this week.
As of 5:00 p.m. EST on Monday, August 28, the National Hurricane Center issued the following key messages:
- A Hurricane Warning is currently in effect for areas in western Florida from the Big Bend Region to Tampa Bay. Areas along the west coast of Florida and the Florida Panhandle are forecast to experience tropical-storm-force winds as early as tomorrow morning, Tuesday, August 29.
- Idalia is predicted to make landfall as a major hurricane early Wednesday morning, August 30. There is potential for destructive winds in the area where the core of Idalia moves onshore. Strong winds will also spread inland across portions of northern Florida near the storm’s center.
- Dangerous storm surge is expected along much of the western coast of Florida. A Storm Surge Warning is in effect for the Florida Gulf Coast, including the Big Bend Region to Tampa Bay.
- From Tuesday, August 29 into Wednesday, August 30, areas under risk of flash flooding include portions of Florida’s west coast, the Florida Panhandle and southern Georgia. The flash flooding risk spreads to portions of the eastern Carolinas from Wednesday, August 30 into Thursday, August 31.
Our Tampa Bay office closed at 5 p.m. today, August 28, and will remain closed through at least Wednesday, August 30. We will evaluate conditions tomorrow as the storm progresses and communicate any further updates or changes to office operations. Your safety is paramount, and we encourage all office-based employees to work remotely from a safe location and not to return to the office until we have communicated that it is safe to do so.
For our employees working at job sites in the storm’s projected path, please reach out to your supervisor to determine the status of your job site, as some will remain open and operational while others will be closed until the storm has passed. As the storm progresses and dissipates, we will assess conditions across impacted locations to determine if and when it is safe to resume onsite operations. Once we have determined it is safe to do so, we will ask essential personnel to return to evaluate projects and facilities before resuming regular onsite operations. We ask that you remain in close contact with your supervisor and communicate whether you need to stay home for safety reasons. Given Idalia is expected to produce heavy rainfall, please also be mindful of Bernhard’s fleet and ensure trucks are parked in a safe, secure area.
We will continue to communicate via email, text and through updates on our Disaster Information Site accessible at this link: http://dr.bernhard.com.
Contact your supervisor if you have any concerns or questions regarding schedules.
Stay safe!