(Parrish, FLA) -- Floridians with KMAland ties are bracing for the impact of a hurricane.
After hammering Cuba Tuesday, Hurricane Ian started its trek across the Gulf Coast toward Florida. Tampa-St. Petersburg and Fort Myers are among the cities threatened by the storm. A Shenandoah native is among those bracing for the hurricane's impact. Amberly (Heslinga) Carrington is a 2007 Shenandoah High graduate now living in Parrish, Florida with her husband Jimmy. Parrish is an unincorporated community located in Manatee County, about 15 miles inland between Tampa and Sarasota. Amberly tells KMA News preparations began last Friday, when the first hurricane projections were issued.
"When we got news about that," said Amberly, "I immediately put in a grocery order for pickup on Friday, because I coach volleyball down there, and my husband is a football coach, and we didn't have time to go to the store. So, we just said, like, we're going to go online and pick them up."
Storm preparations shifted into full gear for Amberly and her husband Monday night, when the couple installed hurricane shutters on their new home. She says other precautions have been taken.
"We've been charging all of our portable charging blocks, laptops, anything we can possibly use as a charger for our cell phones," said Amberly. "We made sure we had our flashlights charged, we have food, we have water in the freezer. We're filling up a bathtub of water to use just in case. We're kind of preparing as well as we can be, considering we're not from there, but also following what everyone is doing around us."
It's the first hurricane for the Carringtons, who moved to Florida only a year ago with the realization that hurricanes could strike where they live. Though Amberly grew up in the Midwest--where tornadoes and severe storms are prevalent--she says hurricanes are different.
"Last time the Tampa Bay area got hit with a hurricane was over a hundred years ago," she said. "Irma hit in 2017, and took a quick shift to the right, and actually cleared out the bay area--the water from the bay. Coming from this side, the west coast side, we've always been told, like, we don't get hit with major hurricanes like the East Coast does, but we always knew that was a possibility."
Currently, Amberly is an administrative assistant for athletics at Booker High School, which is closed until at least Thursday. She says the school serves as a community hurricane shelter. Amberly is the daughter of former Shenandoah High School Principal Chris Heslinga and his wife April. Ironically, Amberly says her family planned to visit her on Friday, and attend the Kansas City Chiefs-Tampa Bay Buccaneers game. NFL officials are expected to move the game to another location due to the hurricane threat.
