Police/military...
Hurricane Wilma's strongest winds had not even touched down in Southwest Florida today before authorities arrested their first looter.
Lee County sheriff's deputies arrested Joshua L. Ledbetter, 22, of 3536 Leeds Road in Fort Myers, for breaking into a South Fort Myers electronics store and stealing more than $700 in goods.
While checking the area around the Trailwinds Plaza on South Cleveland Avenue, deputies and troopers from the Florida Highway Patrol noticed a smashed front door at RePlay, 12001 S. Cleveland Ave., LiMarzi said.
As deputies approached the store, Ledbetter burst out the door and ran away. He was caught and searched. Authorities found on him a bag of marijuana and a smoking pipe, according to LiMarzi.
In the store, Ledbetter stocked a garbage can full of items he intended to steal, ranging from a $100 Sony DVD player to $210 in Sony Playstation video games.
Ledbetter sits in Lee County Jail on more than $5,000 bail. He is tentatively scheduled to appear in Circuit Court Nov. 28 to face felony charges of burglary and theft. He also faces misdemeanor charges for possession of marijuana and paraphenalia.
Fort Myers police were also on the lookout for looters Monday. A plainclothes officer saw three men attempting to enter the Advance Auto Parts store at the intersection of Fowler Road and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
What looked like a crime turned out to be a case of innocence, said Sgt. William Newhouse of the Fort Myers Police Department. One of the suspects was actually the manager of the store who came to check on its condition following Wilma's passing.
TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Jeb Bush urges residents to "please hunker down" as Hurricane Wilma traverses Florida.
"Don't be fooled by the lull in this storm as the eye passes over," Bush says.
He cites reports of flooding in the Florida Keys and tornadoes on the east coast. "We cannot say it enough, it is more dangerous after a storm than it is during the storm," the governor said, urging residents to stay off roads, both for their own safety and to keep those corridors open for emergency responders.
The state has activated 3,100 National Guardsmen to respond to the hurricane. Another 3,000 are on alert, Bush said.
Regional law enforcement command centers have been set up in Fort Myers, Miami, Tampa and Orlando. The state had two hazardous materials response teams deployed to Tampa, and search and rescue teams in place in Tampa, Orlando and Miami.
An estimated 121 general population shelters were open with 32,767 evacuees, and another 29 special needs shelters open to house frail and elderly residents.
The state is prepared to distribute 200,000 meals a day, and has 95 trucks of ice and a similar number loaded with water ready to move south into the damage area.
Another 142 truckloads of water and 115 truckloads of ice remain in storage, and three truckloads of baby food are in warehouses. "There's significant additional support from FEMA in Jacksonville and Homestead" should the state need more, Bush said.
Dunbar High School in Lee County, housing 210 people, is without power. Outages are reported throughout Southwest Florida but state officials did not yet know how many households were affected.
"We've got a response team that is second to none," the governor said.
"We will get through this storm and respond quickly."
High wind speeds and heavier rains early Monday forced first responders and law enforcement officers to stop patroling and responding to emergency calls.
Florida Highway Patrol officials called troopers in Lee and Collier counties off the roads since approximately 3:00 a.m., said Lt. John Tower. Troopers in Charlotte ceased patrols just after 4:00 a.m.
"We don't want to risk any personnel, unnecessarily," Tower said. "We wanted to make sure they have enough time to get to where they're planning on hunkering down."
Troopers in Sarasota County were expected to stop patrols at 4:30 a.m., with troopers in Manatee County following at 5:00 a.m.
Lee County sheriff's deputies are off the road but are still responding to calls, spokesman Larry King told The News-Press at 6 a.m.. Deputies are currently helping to secure emergency shelters on top of normal duties.
Fort Myers police pulled officers off the road just before 3:30 a.m., according to dispatchers.
Fire and rescue workers in Estero, Bonita Springs and San Carlos Park were ordered to stop responding to emergencies at 4:09 a.m.
Operators at the Collier County Emergency Hotline have fielded some 18,000 calls in the past 2 days according to Jim von Rinteln. From people in Collier and Lee counties including one man from Lehigh Acres asking what the curfew hours were for Lehigh Acres.
Currently the most commonly asked question is "should we leave now?" Bradie Allen, hotline operator said.
The Florida National Guard has task force members positioned throughout Southwest Florida awaiting Wilma, and troops from across the state also are on standby.
About 2,000 Florida troops currently are serving overseas in the war on terrorism, but 8,000 troops are still in the Sunshine State, ready to assist local agencies after the storm. Maj. Jack Griggs, who was the Lee County Emergency Operations Center late Sunday, said the primary mission will be security and humanitarian assistance.
"We'll take a look at where the impact is, assess it and put resources where they're needed most," Griggs said.
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