EDGEWATER, Fla. — Edgewater residents are preparing for more potential flooding – it’s something that’s plagued neighborhoods in that Volusia County community for weeks.

What You Need To Know

  • With the possibility that weather related to Hurricane Milton will impact this community in the coming days, the City of Edgewater has stocked two locations throughout the City with sand piles

  • Residents can get up to 10 sandbags per household at one of these two locations: the Air Park staging area (1898 Air Park Road) and a second one at Mango Tree Lake (901 Mango Tree Drive)

  • Both sandbag locations will be accessible and open 24 hours a day until conditions worsen

  • City Councilwoman Charlotte Gillis and other city leaders and first responders have been volunteering their time to help people get their sandbags ready

City crews are working on cleaning stormwater systems, and they will also have pumps and heavy equipment staged throughout the city for use as needed. 

With the possibility that weather related to Hurricane Milton will impact this community in the coming days, the City of Edgewater has stocked two locations throughout the City with sand piles. One at the Air Park staging area (1898 Air Park Road) and a second one at Mango Tree Lake (901 Mango Tree Drive).        

With shovel and bags in hand, dozens of residents went to fill up sandbags on Monday as they prepare for hurricane Milton. City Councilwoman Charlotte Gillis volunteered her time to help people get their sandbags ready.  

“There’s just been a lot of community involvement. I mean, there’s so many businesspeople, the firefighters, it is just everybody’s coming out to help everybody. Everybody is coming together,” Gillis said.

Residents should bring their own shovels and they can get up 10 sandbags per household with proof of Edgewater residency. 

“Right now, we’re just kind of preparing for the worst and hoping for the best,” Gillis said.

After the city experienced chronic flooding in recent weeks, leaders have ramped up preparations ahead of Hurricane Milton.  

“They have been doing canal clean outs throughout town. But there’s only so many workers and there’s only so much equipment. They’re going as fast as they can. And I’m pushing them and I’m staying on top of it. And everybody’s trying their best right now,” Gillis said.

On Pine Tree Drive, resident Ed Mills walks around the house doing last-minute preparations. 

“We’ve got the sandbags right here, and then we’ll put them up in front of the door. Everything else is really tight,” he said.

Mills got his sandbags when he prepared for Hurricane Helene less than two weeks ago, and now will use them again. He has also secured his windows with shutters. 

“Well, we’ve put the shutters up (…) We’re gonna have a little bit of wind by the time he gets over here. We’re hoping we don’t have too much water, but we have sandbags that we’ll put in front of the outer doors,” Mills said.

His neighbor across the street is also preparing by placing sandbags in front of his door. Having lived here since 1993, Mills has gone through many hurricanes, including Hurricane Ian. 

“It was a once in a hundred-year storm and the cold front hit it. It stalled over top of us and just dumped water for a day and a half and then the lakes filled up. There’s a lake on this other street one block over once that filled up, then the water had nowhere to go, and it came into the streets,” Mills said.