Members of the Tampa, Fla., Parks and Recreation Dept., help residents with sandbags Monday, Aug. 28, 2023.Members of the Tampa, Fla., Parks and Recreation Dept., help residents with sandbags Monday, Aug. 28, 2023.
Members of the Tampa, Fla., Parks and Recreation Dept., help residents with sandbags Monday, Aug. 28, 2023. | Chris O'Meara, AP

Closings mount ahead of Tropical Storm Idalia

Published on August 28, 2023 at 3:42 pm
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Organizations and public bodies on the First Coast have begun to cancel activities with the approach of Tropical Storm Idalia.

Duval County Public Schools will be closed Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, and all after-school activities will be canceled. No decision has been made for Friday. For more information, check the Duval Schools website.

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Among other closings:

Schools

  • Clay County schools will close Wednesday. Schools will be open Tuesday, but after-school activities will be canceled. Updates about Thursday will be provided on social media and at oneclay.net.
  • Nassau County Public Schools will be closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
  • St. Johns County Public Schools will close Wednesday. Schools and district offices will remain open Tuesday, but after-school, athletic and extracurricular activities will be canceled. Updates will be provided via SchoolMessenger.
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  • The Catholic Diocese of St. Augustine diocesan offices and Catholic schools will close Wednesday and potentially Thursday.
  • Schools in Camden County, Georgia, will close Wednesday and Thursday.
  • The University of North Florida will cancel all classes, include online classes, on Tuesday and Wednesday. Activities and events scheduled on campus also will be canceled.
  • Jacksonville University will cancel classes Wednesday. Classes will be held online on Tuesday and Thursday.
  • All campuses and centers of Florida State College at Jacksonville will close Tuesday and Wednesday, including online classes and all administrative offices.
  • Keiser University Jacksonville will close Wednesday.

Government

  • Duval County offices will be closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
  • Mayor Donna Deegan’s next Community Conversation, which was set for Tuesday night, has been canceled. The meeting with District 9 City Council member Tyrona Clark-Murray at the Lane Wiley Senior Center will be rescheduled. The Community Conversation with Deegan and council member Mike Gay scheduled for Thursday at New Berlin Elementary School also has been postponed. A new date will be announced shortly.
  • The Duval County Courthouse will close Tuesday through Thursday, as will all Duval County Clerk of Courts offices. 
  • Nassau County offices will close at noon Tuesday and remain closed Wednesday. The Nassau County Courthouse will be closed Tuesday through Thursday.
  • County offices in Camden County, Georgia, as well as the cities of Kingsland, St. Marys and Woodbine will close Wednesday and Thursday.

Transportation

  • JTA will suspend bus routes, ReadiRide, Express Select, the Skyway and Paratransit beginning Wednesday. The St. Johns River Ferry will be will be suspended beginning Tuesday. In addition, JTA will suspend all transportation services if sustained winds reach 35 mph.
  • St. Johns County beach driving will be closed to the public beginning at noon Tuesday and for the duration of the storm. For more information, go to sjcfl.us/hurricane.
  • The Florida Department of Transportation has canceled Tuesday’s public meeting to discuss proposed parking reconfiguration on Florida 211 between St. Johns and Marquette avenues in Jacksonville.

Garbage pickup

  • Waste Management will suspend collection in Baker, Camden, Clay, Duval, Nassau and St. Johns counties on Wednesday.
  • Jacksonville said curbside garbage, recycling, bulk and yard waste collections and household hazardous waste will be suspended Wednesday. Schedules will return to normal Thursday. If your scheduled collection day is Wednesday, a make-up collection will take place Saturday.  
  • The city of St. Augustine will not collect yard debris on Wednesday and will not collect residential recycling on Thursday and Friday. Trash collection will remain on schedule Tuesday.

Arts and entertainment

  • The Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens will be closed Tuesday and remain closed until the storm clears.

Sports

  • The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp have postponed Wednesday’s game against the Charlotte Knights. The game will be made up as part of a doubleheader beginning at 5:05 p.m. Friday. All tickets for Wednesday’s game can be exchanged for any game in 2023.

Seniors

  • Senior centers and facilities of the St. Johns County Council on Aging will close Wednesday and Thursday. For more information and for updates, go to coasjc.org/news or call 904-209-3700.
  • The Sunshine Bus and Paratransit services of St. Johns County Council on Aging will be closed Wednesday, as will transportation facilities and customer service. All Paratransit transportation services will be limited to life-sustaining services only on Tuesday and Thursday.

author image Reporter, WJCT News 89.9 email Dan Scanlan is a veteran journalist with almost 40 years of experience in radio, television, and print reporting. He has worked at various stations in the Northeast and Jacksonville. Prior to joining the WJCT News team, Dan spent 34 years at The Florida Times-Union as a police and current affairs reporter.

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