NORTH CENTRAL FLORIDA (352today.com) – While city officials in Cedar Key continue to enforce a curfew in anticipation of Hurricane Milton, the City of Gainesville decides against it.
Cedar Key
The City of Cedar Key has established a mandatory curfew from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. The city previously enacted a curfew from 8 p.m. to 7 a.m. following the devastation left in Hurricane Helene’s wake.
Earlier this week, Cedar Key’s city commission declared a State of Emergency for the stricken city. Although the storm’s track continues to move south, the city is not showing signs of lifting the State of Emergency or the curfew until further notice.
Gainesville
On Tuesday, the City of Gainesville proposed the possibility of a Wednesday night curfew in response to “deteriorating weather conditions” and “public safety concerns.”
The city says the curfew was originally proposed due to approximately 170 dark traffic lights caused by outages from Hurricane Helene. According to the city, 13 accidents were caused at those intersections in the following days.
The city held a news conference on Wednesday at GPD Headquarters where Gainesville Mayor Harvey Ward promptly announced that the city would not pursue a Wednesday night curfew.
The mayor still implores residents to remain home for the night until the storm’s effects pass.
“Our goal here is to encourage folks to stay off the roads,” says Ward. “I am encouraging you in the strongest language possible, regardless of what we think might happen, stay home tonight.”
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