Entering the 2025 hurricane season that began June 1, Anna Maria Island law enforcement urged residents to take evacuation orders seriously or risk being stranded and endangered without rescue until after storms subside.
The island is still recovering from last season’s back-to-back hits from Hurricanes Helene and Milton, but officials called on residents to look ahead and prepare. That includes a key issue for barrier island residents: securing updated re-entry tags to ensure a smooth return to their coastal properties if evacuations are ordered this year.
Holmes Beach and Bradenton Beach law enforcement typically shut down the Manatee Avenue and Cortez Road bridges to the general public during evacuations and reopen to those with valid re-entry tags only once it is safe.
Area first responders and emergency managers plan to implement lessons learned from last year’s storms this season. Some of the most vivid involved significant storm surge pushed ashore at levels unseen for decades.
Holmes Beach Police Chief William Tokajer and his officers rode out the storms at the city police department and attempted to rescue residents who ignored evacuation orders last year. He said he won’t do that again.
He and other island officials said residents need to heed evacuation orders, and to register in advance with their respective communities so they can return to their properties promptly following a storm.
“The only thing that’s different this year is that I will not make the same mistake and stay on the island like we did during Helene,” Tokajer said. “We were stranded on the island at the police department because we did not expect it to be as bad as it was. We expected the surge to be like Idalia, which stayed about 3 feet away from the police department and didn’t come up. But during Helene we had water 28 inches into our garage.”
He said officers were able to assist about a dozen people during Helene, but the storm surge eventually made it impossible to reach those in danger.
“We were doing water rescues of people who decided they were going to stay back throughout the night,” he said. “We will not do that this year. We will not be there to rescue people that did not take heed to the mandatory evacuations.
“We had one family that had small kids and dogs,” he said. “Once we could not get our vehicles through the water because the water was at least 4 feet high on the roadways. We were telling people they should turn off their power and get on top of their kitchen counter and just wait it out, because we couldn’t get to them.”
Holmes Beach re-entry tags from 2023 and 2024 remain valid this year
The cities of Anna Maria and Bradenton Beach will require residents and business owners to sign up for new re-entry tags this year, but those who reside in Holmes Beach only need to register with the city if they have tags from before 2023.
The city suffered substantial damage during last year’s storms. Helene flooded up to 90% of single-story homes in the city with as much as four feet of water, Tokajer said. When the floodwaters receded, much of the island was left buried in sand, prompting Gov. Ron DeSantis to order an emergency contract to repair Gulf Drive, the main road connecting the island’s three cities.
About two weeks later, powerful winds from Hurricane Milton tore through Manatee County − ripping off roofs, toppling trees, and knocking out power to thousands. Holmes Beach businesses already gutted by storm surge were hit again, this time with wind-driven debris and extended outages that stalled recovery for weeks.
Tokajer said the compounded damage makes it even more critical that access to the island be limited to residents, business owners and contractors with a clear purpose.
Tokajer reminds residents to unplug appliances, shut off electricity, and move electric vehicles or e-bikes out of garages before evacuating to reduce the risk of fires.
“We had a couple of house fires this last storm season with the surge getting to the corrosion of the electric vehicle batteries,” he said. “When they evacuate, they need to make sure they turn the power off to their residence and that they don’t leave golf carts or electric bikes in the garage.”
“We just want people to be prepared, have an evacuation plan,” Tokajer said. “You don’t have to go hundreds of miles − just tens of miles, to a place that’s safe.”
Bradenton Beach issues new re-entry tags, asks residents to register anew
In Bradenton Beach, Police Chief John Cosby said recovery is on track and the city is now focused on hurricane prep. Bradenton Beach has updated its hurricane re-entry tag system and asks that all residents and businesses register anew.
The city is most easily accessed via Cortez Road, with the checkpoint typically located just before the Cortez Bridge.
Cosby said about 80% of structures in the city were damaged during Helene, with 3 to 4 feet of sand covering roadways, homes, and businesses, and that re-entry tags help keep curious onlookers away from the island while recovery efforts are underway.
He said the city’s biggest challenge during recovery process last year was securing contractors to remove sand from Gulf Drive and other roadways. With so many large-scale recovery projects across the state, smaller cities like Bradenton Beach often fell low on the priority list, especially once Milton popped onto the radar.
It took state intervention to assist with sand removal, and a mutual aid agreement with Manatee County for its disposal as repurposed road base.
“It looked like a giant beach,” Cosby said. “Not something you normally consider debris.”
“Our projects are small by FEMA standards,” he said. “Road contractors are chasing hundred-million-dollar projects. It’s hard to get them here for a $1 million job.”
Cosby said the new tags are valid for 2025–26, and only one tag per household or business will be issued initially. Additional tags may be issued once roads are cleared and recovery is underway.
“We have to keep the traffic down,” Cosby said. “Every time a car moves around those tractors, they stop working. That delays recovery.”
Cosby added that residents should follow the Bradenton Beach Police Department’s official Facebook page during storms for the most accurate and up-to-date information.
“During the height of the storm, we were updating it four or five times a day,” he said.
Anna Maria asks residents to renew re-entry tags
In the City of Anna Maria, Mayor Mark Short said the city has taken last year’s lessons seriously. The city held multiple “postmortem” meetings with staff and law enforcement, attending hurricane planning conferences, and investing in new equipment and software. One major change was updating the city’s re-entry tag system.
City of Anna Maria residents must obtain new tags regardless of any previous registration. Tags are available at City Hall and are valid for two years. Only property owners and business owners are eligible. The city continues to coordinate closely with Holmes Beach, through which all Anna Maria traffic must pass.
“We had people showing up with tags from 2005,” Short said. “This lets us draw a line in the sand. The new tags help us know exactly who’s coming back.”
Short said Federal Emergency Management Agency assessments found more than 1,200 structures − nearly the entire city − sustained damage from Helene and Milton.
Helene’s storm surge caused the most widespread destruction, but Short believes Milton likely spawned a waterspout or tornado along the Tampa Bay side of the island, tearing off roofs and scattering debris in unexpected places.
The city’s pier walkway was completely destroyed, and damage to municipal infrastructure is expected to exceed $30 million, including $15 million for stormwater and filtration systems and another $8 million for pier repairs and remediation.
Short emphasized that the tags are essential for public safety and orderly access after a storm.
“Day one after a disaster, our first concern is safety − downed power lines, downed trees, accessibility,” he said. “Once we’re confident it’s safe, the tags help us let in property owners and business operators to assess damage. It’s not the time for sightseers.”
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: ‘We will not be there to rescue people’: Hurricanes teach hard lessons for Manatee islands
Reporting by Jesse Mendoza, Sarasota Herald-Tribune / Sarasota Herald-Tribune
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