There were few cars driving on the streets of Lake Worth at mid-morning, but there were about two dozen people on the beach.
“I wanted to come by and check it out and see what the surf looked like,” said Lake Worth resident Peter Mannarino. “It’s getting rough!”
Ingrid Bonilla, also of Lake Worth, took a documentary approach.
“I wanted to see the beach before the bad weather comes,” Bonilla said. “I want to come back after the storm and see how it’s gonna look - a before-and-after picture.”
Up A1A and just across the Southern Boulevard Bridge, two neighbors in West Palm Beach are finalizing plans - one staying, one going. Jack Smith is closing the the trunk on his bone-white 1966 Ford Thunderbird.
“I’m going to store this classic car out of the damage of the wind,” Smith said.
But Smith was sticking around.
“I live here in the condo - on the 3rd floor,” he said. “This place is like a fort. It’s poured cement.”
But he was worried about his north-facing windows.
“All of us have balconies with glass in the back - 14 feet by 10 feet,” said Smith. “A lot of pressure is gonna be pushing on that glass.”
Smith’s neighbor, Rene Kerr, was leaving. She was heading further inland to stay with a friend in in Wellington, Fla. Kerr had had enough excitement.
“It was a 40 minute wait for gas,” said Kerr. “I had to get up at like 6:30 to go to Publix after they restocked. But, yeah, it’s a madhouse down here for sure. People are pretty desperate and scared.”
Some of those people were picking up last-minute items around the corner at the 7-11 store on Southern Blvd.
“We put the shutters, boards. We’ll be closing soon,” said store manager Rana Sarkar. “The main thing people are buying is water, ice, beer, alcohol, and cigarettes.”
Just up the road, a desert-tan troop carrier pulled out of another gas station, carrying a dozen soldiers in fatigues and helmets. Members of Florida National Guard’s 53rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team were on the ready, awaiting their orders.
