Pasco Adjusts Sandbag Hours, Locations Ahead Of Hurricane Irma

NEW PORT RICHEY, FL — As residents rush to prepare for the possible impacts Hurricane Irma may have on the Tampa Bay area, Pasco County has announced new hours for its sandbag locations. It also has taken on pick-up spot off the list due to excessive traffic.

The county's sandbag locations will be open from 8 a.m. until midnight "to help residents protect their property from potential flooding ahead of Hurricane Irma," the county wrote in a Wednesday afternoon email to media. (For more hurricane news or local news from Florida, click here to sign up for real-time news alerts and newsletters from New Port Richey Patch, and click here to find your local Florida Patch. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)

The locations open to serve county residents are as follows:

• Mitchell Park, 4825 Little Road, New Port Richey
• Fire Station No. 17, 2951 Seven Springs Blvd., New Port Richey
• Magnolia Valley Golf Course Clubhouse, 7223 Massachusetts Ave., New Port Richey
• Veterans Memorial Park, 14333 Hicks Road, Hudson
• C-Barn, 30908 Warder Road, San Antonio
• Dade City Police Department, 38042 Pasco Ave., Dade City
• Land O' Lakes Recreation Center, 3032 Collier Parkway, Land O' Lakes
• Wesley Chapel District Park, 7727 Boyette Road, Wesley Chapel
• Zephyrhills Fire Station, 6907 Dairy Road, Zephyrhills

Watch: Hurricane Irma Pummels The Caribbean; Florida Could Be Next

The West Pasco Government Center is no longer handing out sandbags "due to traffic issues," county spokesman Doug Tobin said.

The county's sandbag locations are self-serve. That means residents will need to fill their own bags at most sites, but some may have help available, Tobin said. Residents are urged to bring their own shovels.

The City of New Port Richey is also offering sandbags from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 6420 Pine Hill Road.

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Hurricane Irma, the most powerful Atlantic storm ever recorded, was passing over the northernmost Virgin Islands Wednesday afternoon, packing maximum sustained winds of 185 mph. The potentially catastrophic Category 5 storm’s track shifted in the overnight hours to include almost the entire Florida Peninsula.

• Also see: Hurricane Irma Aims For Florida After Thrashing Caribbean Islands

By Wednesday afternoon, hurricane-force winds extended out from Irma by 50 miles from the center. Tropical storm-force winds were extending outward by 185 miles.

While it’s still too early to tell the precise impacts Irma might have on Florida or the United States, forecasters say she bears close monitoring. Irma is expected to remain a major hurricane through the week. The threat Irma poses to Florida prompted Gov. Rick Scott to declare a state of emergency on Monday. The declaration includes all 67 counties within the Sunshine State.

Photo of traffic backed up outside the West Pasco Government Center courtesy of Pasco County