Hurricane Irma: Pasco County Out Of Sandbags

Pasco County is out of sandbags, and emergency officials said more bags should be available by 8 a.m. Saturday.

Those that have their own bags can use the sandbag sites that are listed below:

• Mitchell Park, 4825 Little Road, New Port Richey
• Fire Station #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 Dept., 38042 Pasco Ave., Dade City
• Land O’ Lakes Rec Center, 3032 Collier Pkwy., Land O’ Lakes
• Wesley Chapel District Park, 7727 Boyette Road, Wesley Chapel
• Zephyrhills Fire Station, 6907 Dairy Road, Zephyrhills
• Gulf View Square Mall, 9409 U.S. 19 (Behind mall)

All above locations are open from 8 a.m. until midnight.

New Port Richey is also providing sandbags daily from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the following location:

• Fleet Maintenance, 6420 Pine Hill Road, Port Richey

Mandatory evacuations are in place for some Pasco residents, including those who live west of U.S. 19. The county made the decision to upgrade its voluntary evacuation order to mandatory late Friday morning as Irma’s projected path continued on a course toward the Tampa Bay area. (For more hurricane news or local news from Florida, click here to sign up for real-time news alerts and newsletters from Clearwater Patch, and click here to find your local Florida Patch. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)

Watch: FEMA Tells Floridians In Irma's Path To 'Get Out Now'

By 11 a.m. Sept. 8, Irma had lost some, but not much of its punch. The beast that tore through the Caribbean, leaving at least 10 people dead in its wake, had downgraded to a strong Category 4 storm, packing maximum sustained winds of 150 mph. Irma was located about 405 miles southeast of Miami, moving west-northwest at 14 mph.

On its current path, Irma is expected to clear the northern Cuban coastline by Saturday and make landfall in Florida sometime Sunday morning. Forecasters say Irma’s hurricane-force winds extend out 70 miles from the center while tropical storm-force winds reach out 185 miles. Although downgraded, forecasters at the National Hurricane Center say Irma remains an “extremely dangerous Category 4 hurricane.”

• See also: Hurricane Irma: Entire Tampa Bay Area Under Watch

At the National Weather Service’s Tampa Bay office in Ruskin, forecasters say Irma’s effects are likely to be felt in the region starting Saturday night. Tropical storm conditions are possible in the overnight hours Saturday, while hurricane conditions are expected throughout the day Sunday and into Monday.

Patch editor Sherri Lonon contributed to this report.

Sandbags Photo by Diana Fredlund, US Army Corps of Engineers