The final day of the Food For Florida program in Fort Myers turned traffic into a nightmare for thousands of people in need. Families from Lee and Collier Counties flocked to the Port Authority parking lot near Southwest Florida International Airport on Chamberin Parkway, looking for help restocking their refrigerators after power losses from Hurricane Irma. But traffic became so congested Tuesday morning that Lee County Sheriff's deputies had to temporarily close access to the event, causing headaches for many who were ironically trying to beat the crowds.
"Traffic wasn't so bad on the interstate," said Julio Fernandez, who drove up from Collier County before sunrise. "It's when you hit Daniels (Parkway) and then you can see the lines."
Tuesday was the last day that people could receive the food assistance in Lee County, but the traffic became so heavy in the early hours of the day that deputies temporarily re-routed drivers away from the event.
"I was disappointed because they had these electronic signs saying 'Food For Florida,'" Fernandez said. "They should have programmed it saying it's closed, come back at 7. It would have saved a lot of people a lot of headaches and time."
Traffic was still heavy, but manageable, by late morning.
"It wasn't bad at all," said Nicole Sciarroni, who also drove up from Collier County. "We were in line with the cars maybe like ten, fifteen minutes. Inside was about 20. We got to the table, and a minute later it was done."
No matter how long the wait, Jodie Garcia of Fort Myers said it was worth it to get the electronic benefits card that will help them replace all the food that spoiled after Hurricane Irma.
"We got a lot of wind damage, and then having no power for a week, everything went bad," Garcia said. "So this is helping tremendously."
Anyone who still needs food assistance related to loss from Hurricane Irma will have to go another location, such as Miami-Dade or Broward County. A link to dates and locations can be found here.
