Current:Home > FinanceHurricane Idalia looters arrested as residents worry about more burglaries-DB Wealth Institute B2 Reviews & Ratings
Hurricane Idalia looters arrested as residents worry about more burglaries
lotradecoin roadmap View Date:2024-12-25 22:14:36
HORSESHOE BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Two people were charged with looting a home damaged by Hurricane Idalia in Florida’s Big Bend region, as residents’ concerns grew that burglars could be tempted to hit other hurricane-ravaged homes since law enforcement is stretched thin in the remote, wooded area along the Gulf Coast.
Some residents of Horseshoe Beach, Florida, one of the communities hardest hit after Idalia made landfall Wednesday as a Category 3 hurricane, urged law enforcement to set up checkpoints where people would have to show identification in order to get into the town.
Marina worker Kerry Ford had high praise for local law enforcement’s response to the hurricane but wished more would be done to keep out people who don’t belong in Horseshoe Beach.
The authorities “did really good,” Ford said. “Now, the only thing I’ve seen where they’ve dropped the ball is you can come right into Horseshoe without showing you’re a resident or anything like that. That’s a problem, especially with no power. You’ve got to have somebody here keeping out everybody other than the residents.”
A man and a woman from Palmetto, Florida, almost 200 miles (322 kilometers) south of where Idalia made landfall, were arrested Wednesday after an officer from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission heard noises coming from outside a home in Horseshoe Beach.
The officer found the man and woman loading up items from the waterfront home into a rented pickup truck. One of the suspects told deputies that the homeowner had given him permission to remove items from the house on stilts. But the homeowners told deputies when contacted that they had done no such thing, according to a statement from the Dixie County Sheriff’s Office.
Each suspect was charged with burglary of an unoccupied dwelling during an emergency, grand theft and trespassing, with bails set for each at $1 million.
“We are taking strong action against this criminal activity,” the sheriff’s office said in the statement.
On Saturday, there were more than 61,000 Florida residents and 8,700 Georgia residents without power due to Idalia. President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden headed to Florida Saturday for a tour of the hurricane-damaged area.
Idalia made landfall Wednesday morning near Keaton Beach with winds of 125 mph (200 kph) and a 6-foot (1.8-meter) storm surge. The fast-moving storm then tore through largely rural stretches of inland Florida and southern Georgia before exiting for the ocean in the Carolinas. The storm wreaked havoc on a slice of old Florida that has escaped massive coastal development.
Tammy Bryan, who works at the First Freewill Baptist Church in Horseshoe Beach, said the looters could help in another way.
“All the looters that are coming in, OK, if you’re going to loot, stop and help somebody. Help load up some trash and take the rest with you, if that’s the way it has to be,” Bryan said. “But we need reinforcement here.”
___
Associated Press writer Mike Schneider in St. Louis contributed to this report.
veryGood! (4)
Related
- US shoppers sharply boosted spending at retailers in July despite higher prices
- After years of going all-in, Rams now need young, unproven players to 'figure stuff out'
- 3 dead from rare bacterial infection in New York area. What to know about Vibrio vulnificus.
- Kellie Pickler Shares “Beautiful Lesson” Learned From Late Husband Kyle Jacobs
- White House says deals struck to cut prices of popular Medicare drugs that cost $50 billion yearly
- The Blind Side Author Weighs in on Michael Oher Claims About the Tuohy Family
- White Sox's Tim Anderson has suspension trimmed for fight with Guardians' José Ramírez
- Kim Kardashian Says the Latest SKIMS Launch Is “Like a Boob Job in a Bra”
- Giants trading Jordan Phillips to Cowboys in rare deal between NFC East rivals
- 8-year-old girl fatally hit by school bus in Kansas: police
Ranking
- Streamer stayed awake for 12 days straight to break a world record that doesn't exist
- Hillsong Church founder Brian Houston found not guilty of concealing his father’s child sex crimes
- FOMC meeting minutes release indicates the Fed may not be done with rate hikes
- Foes of Biden’s Climate Plan Sought a ‘New Solyndra,’ but They Have yet to Dig Up Scandal
- How 'Millionaire' host Jimmy Kimmel helped Team Barinholtz win stunning top prize
- Mortgage rates just hit their highest since 2002
- North Carolina Republicans finalize legislation curbing appointment powers held by governor
- Instacart scam leads to $2,800 Kroger bill and no delivery
Recommendation
-
A fiery Texas politician launched a legal assault on Google and Meta. And he's winning.
-
New Mexico congressman in swing district seeks health care trust for oil field workers
-
Calling all shoppers: Vote for the best grocery stores and butcher shops in the US
-
See RHONY's Brynn Whitfield Hit on Her Costar's Husband Behind Her Back in OMG Preview
-
'Truffles is just like me:' How a Pennsylvania cat makes kids feel proud to wear glasses
-
North Dakota governor, running for president, dodges questions on Trump, says leaders on both sides are untrustworthy
-
'Blue Beetle' director brings DC's first Latino superhero to life: 'We never get this chance'
-
Michael Parkinson, British talk show host knighted by Queen Elizabeth II, dies at 88