Tampa Bay businesses stayed open hours before Helene hit. Why?

Before Hurricane Helene battered the barrier islands of Tampa Bay on Thursday, general manager Jeff Hickman opened the doors to The Shipwreck in Clearwater Beach.

That evening, he would usher the last three customers — Clearwater Beach residents who were weathering the storm with a cocktail or two — out the door as the winds picked up and waves from the Gulf of Mexico rolled onto the street. A few hours later, he was opening his car door amid raging floodwaters, with his 10-year-old Chihuahua, Nacho, in his arms.

His car stalled and began to drift down Mandalay Avenue. He called 911. From the window, Hickman saw the Sandpearl Resort. He dove into the water up to his waist, cell phone still pressed to his ear. Carrying Nacho on his head, he began walking, finally taking refuge at the Sand Pearl for the night.

“Everybody’s going to say, ‘You should have evacuated,'” Hickman said. “We’re in (evacuation) zone A, and everyone was supposed to be gone. But obviously a lot of people stay.”

From Clearwater Beach to Treasure Island in the Tampa Canal District, at least eight bars and restaurants in or near mandatory evacuation zones remained open Thursday, sometimes late into the night.

In Pinellas County, businesses were advised by the economic development department to comply with mandatory evacuation orders until noon Thursday and close. In Hillsborough County, evacuation orders are supposed to include businesses, a county spokesman said.

Hickman told his eight-member staff to stay home Thursday. But the Shipwreck had never been closed during tropical storms in the past and hadn’t seen flooding in more than 25 years.

The bar wore its status as a shelter amid bad weather as a “badge of honor,” he said.

So he entered.

The worst storm Tampa Bay has seen in more than a century could change that tune next time, he said.

The next morning, the bar was still flooded. On Monday, a foot of mud covered the floors. Reopening will take weeks, if not months.

Other business owners cited their reputation for staying open as a community watering hole as storms approach. Sheila Smith, owner of Southside Coffee Brew in St. Petersburg’s Big Bayou neighborhood, operates near an evacuation zone.

The cafe was open until 1pm on Thursday to a steady stream of customers. It has remained open during other close calls for Tampa Bay, even as floodwaters crept along surrounding roads, Smith said.

“We never close,” Smith said. “I have been here for 10 years. Everyone comes in before they fall asleep” about the storm.

Smith said she had at least three employees volunteer to work Thursday with her. By Friday morning, the store was spared. The lights came on. Neighbors without power, some who had lost their possessions in the flooding, lined the parking lot.

Some businesses choose to stay open during storms for the sake of community ties, said Robert Pierce, a business consultant for Hillsborough County Economic Development. At Craft Coffee in downtown St. Petersburg on Thursday and Friday, bartenders handed out free coffee to the first people staying at a nearby hotel, owner Teddy Skiadiotis said.

La La’s Sangria Bar, in a mandatory evacuation zone in Tampa’s Canal District, stayed open until 3 a.m. as Helene passed through. “Stay safe, but we’re open for the neighborhood,” an Instagram post read. A block away, flooded streets. Residents who had not been evacuated from the apartment complex above wandered into the night, owner John English said.

For Uptown Eats in St. Petersburg, money was another factor. This summer was even tougher for small businesses than last year, when many struggled to raise enough revenue, owner Dan Schmidt said. The cafe was open until noon on Thursday.

“We need the revenue,” he said. “And then I talked to the staff and they need the hours.”

Business owners and managers who spoke to the Tampa Bay Times echoed the same sentiment: No employees were forced inside. Some, like Hickman and Anthony Roman of Hawthorne Bottle Shoppe, worked Thursdays only at their bars.

But providing an option to work presents a problem, said Chris Wilkerson, a spokesman for Hillsborough County. Employees can choose wages over safe evacuation, he said.

“You’re asking them to come in for a lunch shift on Thursday. Maybe close just in time for the storm to get here and that works for you as a business owner,” Wilkerson said. “For all of your employees, they failed to plan. They failed to evacuate. They may not be in financial shape.” to leave.

Shipwreck wasn’t the only bar on Pinellas County’s barrier islands to stay open — only to face destruction within hours. Ka’Tiki, a live music bar on Treasure Island, announced it will stay open until 6 p.m. Thursday.

Days later came photos of the bar engulfed in piles of sand, tables and branches haphazardly thrown nearby. “Closed until further notice,” the business said.

“On a positive note, the bar is still standing!” one commenter responded.