Use 'Cat Litter,' St. Pete Suggests As Sandbags Run Out

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — As St. Petersburg residents rush to prepare for the impacts Hurricane Irma may have on the region, the city has announced its sandbag supply is running low. With "an unprecedented number of sandbags, approximately 120,000 and counting," already given out, the city is recommending residents get creative to prevent flooding.

"If need be, residents can consider filling their bags with alternative materials, such as top soil for their yards or cat litter," a Thursday night email from the city said.

Earlier on Thursday, the city warned its supplies were running low. “This week, since Tuesday, the City of St. Petersburg has distributed more than 90,000 bags.” The city gives out about 120,000 sandbags throughout a "typical storm season." (For more hurricane news or local news from Florida, click here to sign up for real-time news alerts and newsletters from St. Pete Patch, and click here to find your local Florida Patch. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)

While some sandbag materials remain, the city said at 7:08 p.m. Sept. 7, it expected locations to run out within the hour. The locations offering materials until supplies run out are as follows:

• Lake Vista Recreation Center, 1401 62nd Ave. S.
• Northeast Park – 875 62nd Ave. N.E.
• Bartlett Park, 2000 Seventh St. S.
• Northwest Pool, 2331 60th St. N.

Watch: Deaths, Destruction Reported As Hurricane Irma Heads Toward Florida

Proof of residency is required to pick up the limit of 10 sandbags per resident. City staff are at all four locations to help residents.

“Expect long lines and please be patient as our city team does their best to keep everyone safe and prepared,” the city noted.

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By 5 p.m. Thursday, Irma was located about 40 miles south of Grand Turk Island. The Category 5 storm was packing maximum sustained winds of 175 mph while moving west-northwest at 16 mph.

On its current projected path, Hurricane Irma is expected to pass by Cuba on Friday and Saturday with the potential for landfall in south Florida on Sunday. As of the National Hurricane Center’s 5 p.m. Sept. 7 update, almost the entire peninsula of Florida remained in the storm’s possible path.

Hurricane-force winds extended out from Irma by 70 miles Thursday. Tropical storm-force winds extended out 185 miles. Forecasters say, “some fluctuations in intensity are likely during the next day or two, but Irma is forecast to remain a powerful Category 4 or 5 hurricane during the next couple of days.” The storm has been blamed for at least 10 deaths in the Caribbean.

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