CITRUS COUNTY, Fla. — It’s a bitter irony.
Aaron Hefty makes his living on the water.
“Some of the best fishin’ in Ozello is out my back door,” said the charter boat captain who runs Hefty’s Ozello Adventures.
But now, it’s the water threatening to injure his livelihood.
He and roughly 600 other full-time residents live in Ozello, a remote chain of islands surrounded by the Gulf of Mexico in Citrus County. The community is particularly vulnerable as Idalia approaches because of its isolated geography.
“One way in. One way out,” Hefty said. “We are surrounded by water.”
Hefty is confident his historic house, built in 1964 and just feet from a canal, will take on water if Idalia brings the anticipated storm surge to the community. Many other homes are similarly situated.
Hefty’s not just worried about storm surge. He’s also worried about a very high tide — known as a king tide — which is set for mid-week.
“A lot of people are going to lose a lot of stuff, man,” he said. “I think everybody needs to get out of here. I mean, this is going to be a dangerous situation back here. You’re going to have trees down. It might wash the road out — out front.”
In Crystal River, storm surge and flooding are also likely.
Sheriff Mike Prendergast met ABC Action News outside Crystal River City Hall on Monday afternoon. As he explained, the area has flooded before during Hurricane Irma in 2017, Tropical Storm Hermine in 2016, and the infamous No-Name Storm in 1994.
“If the storm stays on track and it stays as intense as the forecasters are predicting, I would probably be under two feet of water above my head,” he explained, just feet from US-19.
Luckily, he said there’s still time to head to higher ground. That isn’t just the sheriff’s advice; it’s now mandatory for everyone in Citrus County’s coastal Zone A. The evacuation zone includes 18,000 people.
Click here to see Citrus County's evacuation zones.
“We’re in a mandatory evacuation. If you are in Flood Zone A in Citrus County, evacuate immediately,” he said. “Run from the water. Hide from the wind. That’s our message.”
The sheriff said those within the zone should travel to safer areas “tens upon tens of miles further to the east.” He said evacuees should seek shelter with friends and family and use the county shelters as a last resort.
Even if it means leaving his beloved house behind, Hefty will heed the sheriff’s warning and evacuate.
“Where I’m staying is 46 feet above sea level, so I know I’ll be good there,” he said.
He hopes others will choose safety, too. Though leaving the unique coastal community he loves will be hard, he said he knows it can be rebuilt if necessary.
“Everybody’s going to stick together. We’ll all rebuild,” he said. “Ozello is just the greatest place on Earth.”
