FL

Storm restoration across Gulf County

Gulf County sits on Florida's Panhandle "Forgotten Coast" and faces a severe hurricane threat from storms tracking northeast across the warm Gulf of Mexico. Hurricane Michael made Category 5 landfall near the county in October 2018, driving 9 to 14 feet of storm surge along roughly 30 miles of coastline from Tyndall Air Force Base to Port St. Joe, destroying over 985 structures and damaging more than 2,000 county-wide. Beyond coastal surge, the county is exposed to extreme straight-line winds (Michael's sustained winds exceeded 160 mph at landfall), and the eastern portions along the Apalachicola and Chipola rivers face recurrent inland riverine flooding that triggers voluntary evacuations when river stages approach 22 to 24 feet.