There are two weir systems on the island of Sanibel that control storm water runoff but do not control storm surge waters. Fox 4 Meteorologist Andrew Shipley got a look from the city on just how the weir system works and how the city of Sanibel is planning for future storms.
“We know that our residents are concerned about the amount of water that has come on the island,” said City Manager Dana Souza.
It’s fair to say that the city of Sanibel has seen its fair share of water this year, whether it was near 70 inches of rainfall or three different storm surge events from Debbie, Helene, and Milton.
“There have been questions about city’s weir management, about whether we are proactively or properly releasing water,” said Souza.
Souza addressed those concerns on Friday.
“We get the good forecasts from your station, and we watch the National Weather Service very closely so we can anticipate the rainfall we have and can increase the capacity,” said Souza.
Increasing capacity can also be a balancing act as well.