Riding the storm out: A note from the Catalyst

Here at the St. Pete Catalyst, we’re dreading the arrival of Hurricane Milton just like everyone in our extended Pinellas community.

Will it be as bad as some are forecasting? We won’t know until near-landfall, of course, but in the meantime the anxiety is powerful. The waiting, as someone once sang, is the hardest part.

Here’s another reminder, to those who’ve chosen not to evacuate but to stay put, to look out for you and yours as this storm rages.

And look out for each other. We are community and we are in this together. Let’s make our impact on each other Category 5-level support and grace. 

The Catalyst staff continues to work for you. Publisher Joe Hamilton, myself and writers Mark Parker and Ashley Morales are staying in St. Petersburg. We each have battened-down homes in higher elevation zones. Our families and our pets are safe.

We’re going to keep reporting as long as the power and the internet signals hold out. We likely won’t be as up-to-date as live weather reports, but that’s not what we’re built for. We exist to keep St Petersburg better connected and aligned by sharing the decisions, actions and circumstances that shape our community. 

Connected and aligned is going to be important in the coming hours and days. We’ll be here to tell the stories of our struggles as well as our inevitable triumph over them. Stay safe. Stay strong, Stay connected.