ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – Sunday marked the 350th anniversary of the 1672 groundbreaking ceremonies for Castillo de San Marcos.
It’s like night and day in St. Augustine since Hurricane Ian hit.
Businesses were back open and people were outside celebrating the famous fort.
“Oh, it’s a beautiful, beautiful day it’s gorgeous!” said Jennifer Wilson, who lives in St. Augustine.
High flood waters and reports of 60 mph winds swamped downtown St. Augustine starting early Thursday morning.
Water also completely flooded the A1A near the Bridge of Lions and pushed inland toward North Ponce De Leon Boulevard.
“We live here so this isn’t the first storm we’ve been through,” said CJ Wilson.
Just a few feet away from the Castillo de San Marcos was covered with flood waters.
There was a marking on the grass that showed just how high the water came over the seawall but on Sunday it was business as usual.
“I was actually thinking there would be more people to be honest with you. When we parked here, we found parking which is a rarity here,” said Josh Hogan.
CJ and Jennifer Wilson told News4Jax that they had no doubt that downtown St. Augustine would reopen in time for the Castillo de San Marcos’ anniversary.
“They always reopen. It withstood a lot of hurricanes and storms over the years,” the Wilsons added.
St. Augustine isn’t 100% back to normal yet but Sunday was another example of the city’s resilience.