Wildwood residents, firefighters prepare for Hurricane Ian's remnants
WILDWOOD, N.J. (CBS) – The remnants of Hurricane Ian are expected to bring heavy rain and wind to the Philadelphia area starting Friday night. Residents and first responders are preparing for what could become a wild weekend.
Dave and Kelly Coonelly came to North Wildwood for the day to watch the waves crash onto the shore.
"It's beautiful," Dave Coonelly said. "Just the raw force of nature."
Kelly Coonelly added, "We're celebrating an anniversary and just wanted to see this. This is pretty awesome."
But, in west Wildwood, Renee and Steve Gudleski aren't as amazed by the sights.
"I guess it was pretty much expected," Renee Gudleski said. "It's not our first time that we had a lot of wind and crazy bay swirls there."
The Gudleski's already prepared their house for when Ian's remnants pass over them.
"Most of the time, you just take down the chairs," Steve Gudleski said. "Any kind of deck chairs. Anything that's going to blow around."
Wildwood firefighters are preparing for flooding in low-lying areas of the Wildwoods, especially the western shore area.
A viral video depicts firefighters in Naples, Florida, evacuating some of their equipment from the fire trucks getting swallowed up by the water.
Firefighters in Naples, Florida make a water rescue, bringing someone to safety as #HurricaneIan rages across the state. pic.twitter.com/73yGYsxoaQ
— CBS News (@CBSNews) September 29, 2022
Deputy Chief Daniel Dunn from the Wildwood Fire Department showed CBS3 some of the high water vehicles they have. The trucks are checked weekly and used for high water evacuations and firefighting.
Dunn says firefighters are also ready in case of any high water rescues, but they are urging people to avoid flooded roadways.
"Obviously, we tell people this all the time, 'turn around, don't drown, do not drive your vehicle into flooded streets,'" Dunn said. "The main thing is people don't realize it's saltwater and saltwater will destroy your vehicle and it creates obviously the safety situation. So, do not try driving through flooded streets, just turn around, find an alternative route and go the other way."
Two major events were supposed to happen in Wildwood this weekend, a fishing tournament and a run. Both were canceled which really frees up firefighters' resources in case of anything that may happen as a result of these remnants.