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“I’m staying put, but I am fortunate to be in a no evacuation zone, so I’m grateful for that. But during Irma I swore I’d never ride out another one. Yet, here I am,” Jean Sheridan of Dunedin told Patch. “I feel burned out from last year with Ian, but I still have all those supplies; water, batteries and dry foods.”

Nearly 7 million people — about a third of Florida’s residents and visitors at the time — evacuated when Irma made landfall twice in the state in 2017, once in the Florida Keys and again near Marco Island. It’s one of few storms to ever reach a maximum sustained wind speed of 185 mph or higher.

Fewer people evacuated during Ian, a powerful Category 4 storm that was initially forecast to directly hit the Tampa Bay area before making a last-minute turn and pummeling Southwest Florida on Sept. 28, 2022. The storm was responsible for more than 150 direct and indirect deaths and more than $112 billion in damages, making it the costliest hurricane in Florida’s history and the third-costliest ever to hit the United States.

When Ian hit, more than 2.5 million Floridians were under evacuation orders. But many readers told Patch at the time that they planned to ride out the storm at home.

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With Idalia approaching, a number of readers have indicated they once again plan to stay put when it reaches Florida.

“We only evacuated once in 30 years — (Indian Rocks Beach) during (Hurricane) Andrew and the police came to the door and made us leave the island,” Mary Ellen DiPietra of Tarpon Springs told Patch. “This is like all storms, we are supplied and ready to hunker down! Whatever hunker entails.”

Laura Cholewa lives in a Pinellas County mobile home and is under mandatory evacuation orders.

“I have no car, so we will be staying here,” she told Patch. “We’re prepared. We got plenty of water, food, flashlights, batteries. So we’re all good. Just please say a prayer for us.”

She also noted that she has a cat that she wants to stay close to home for during the storm and that she feels safe among her neighbors at the mobile home park.

Others also said their evacuation plans are driven by their furry friends.

Kathy Paquin of St. Petersburg said, “With Irma, we boarded up with plywood. Now we have fabric hurricane shutters, (and) no to evacuating as we have five dogs and I’m not leaving them.”

“Not planning on going anywhere if for no other reason (than) I’ve got three cats to shelter,” Pinellas Park resident Buddy Baker told Patch.

Others simply lack the energy to prepare much for Idalia or to evacuate.

“We are inland Tampa Bay, so (we’re) just getting essentials and staying put,” Shannon Marie of Plant City said. “We moved tons of plants and planters for previous hurricanes, like Irma and Ian, but I don’t have the energy to do it this time. So (we’re) just hoping for the best.”

And for others, after experiencing both Irma and Ian, they feel more confident in facing Idalia.

“I’m a homeowner this time, but I’m staying put,” Rachel Rayburn of St. Petersburg said. “This is my third hurricane and (I) feel less afraid this time.”

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