First-Term Baldwin County Mayors Say Isaias Tested Storm Plans in Spanish Fort, Robertsdale, Bay Minette

SPANISH FORT, Ala. — Hurricane Isaias was the first major storm for several newly elected mayors in Baldwin County, and Baldwin County mayors say Isaias, which knocked out power and toppled trees, tested their storm plans while leaving their cities with little serious damage and a few lessons learned.

Isaias made landfall near Destin, Fla., on the night of Friday, Oct. 9, and the heaviest damage fell east of Baldwin County, in the Florida Panhandle and in Escambia, Monroe and Conecuh counties in Alabama. Baldwin County saw power outages and fallen trees across the county but avoided the worst of the storm.

Mayors in Spanish Fort, Robertsdale and Bay Minette, all serving their first terms, said they are grateful no significant damage occurred and are keeping storm-battered neighbors in their thoughts.

Spanish Fort: ‘It helped us identify some gaps’

Spanish Fort Mayor Brad Bass said there was anxiety surrounding the storm during his first term, but he was “glad it wasn’t worse than it was for our area.” He also offered prayers for people in the Florida Panhandle, which was hit much harder.

Bass said the city’s response gave officials a useful look at their own preparations.

“It helped us identify some gaps,” Bass said. “I think we were prepared, both police, fire, public works and of course our partners with the utility companies, but you know, much easier finding those gaps when it’s a storm that doesn’t have quite the damage that the other folks the east of us had.”

Bass said Spanish Fort “dodged a bullet.” He recalled eating lunch with other Eastern Shore mayors when forecasts showed the storm heading toward Mobile Bay at high tide, with surge of around 9 to 10 feet. He said that would have been the worst-case scenario for the area, including Spanish Fort and the Causeway, the low-lying roadway that links the Eastern Shore with Mobile across the head of the bay.

Instead, the only major damage Bass said he knew of was six large oak trees that fell, all of which were cleaned up the next day. One of those trees came down on Sunday. Bass said it had termite damage, and he believes Friday’s winds contributed to its fall. Public works crews removed it quickly.

“I know talking with Riviera and Baldwin EMC in Spanish Fort, we had around 700 people that lost power, but I think all of those had power back by Saturday afternoon, so we were obviously very fortunate the damage wasn’t any more than it could have been,” Bass said. “We’ve got good friends that live over in the Panhandle and they were struck pretty hard by the storm, so continued prayers for them as well.”

Riviera Utilities and Baldwin EMC, an electric cooperative, are the two power providers serving the Spanish Fort area.

Robertsdale: Preparation started early in the week

In central Baldwin County, Robertsdale Mayor Ruth Campbell said the city began preparing at the start of the week as forecasts came in. The Robertsdale City Council declared a local state of emergency on Thursday, Oct. 8.

Robertsdale Electrical Foreman Scott Bankester said two of the city’s six power circuits went out sometime after dark on Friday, Oct. 9, but both were back in service within 24 hours after the storm passed. City Engineer Evan Davis said officials knew of little structural damage and had little debris to manage beyond some fallen trees.

Campbell, who served on the Robertsdale City Council before becoming mayor, said that experience helped prepare her for Isaias. She was on the council when Hurricane Sally struck the area in September 2020.

“So proud of our city, all of our city employees, how everybody works together and everybody’s prepared,” Campbell said. “They’ll have classes and we have department head meeting and the different meetings with the departments and the employees themselves to where when the incident came up as it did, everybody knew what to do and everybody was prepared. We were set and ready and just very grateful that it wasn’t any more damaging than what it was.”

Campbell said she was especially concerned about Brewton, in neighboring Escambia County, where families and officials are still assessing damage from the storm.

“Our employees have (several times) mentioned and are praying for our neighbors in Brewton, Alabama and the surrounding areas around Brewton that took the hard hit,” Campbell said.

Bay Minette: Communication was the priority

In north Baldwin County, Bay Minette Mayor Joshua Brown, also serving his first term, said the city was fortunate, with no flooding or damage to city property. The only structural damage he recalled was to a privately owned building whose roof collapsed, which he said may have been tied to preexisting structural problems worsened by the weather.

“On Saturday afternoon, more than 1,000 residents were without power, but utilities worked quickly, and service to all customers within the city limits was fully restored by Sunday evening,” Brown said. “Once conditions stabilized, City staff returned to normal operations on Saturday morning.”

Brown and the Bay Minette City Council had approved a local state of emergency during a special-called meeting on Oct. 7, which took effect at 6 a.m. Oct. 9.

Because Isaias was the first major storm of his tenure, Brown said “a strong emphasis was placed on clear communication and coordinated operations across all City departments.” The city’s public works, police and fire departments began preparing early. The city set up standardized reporting procedures so every department provided updates in the same format, and officials held several coordination meetings before, during and after the storm.

“Our departments did an exceptional job,” Brown said. “Their experience and professionalism were evident throughout the event, and the coordinated effort among Public Works, Police, Fire, and our EMA partners made the biggest difference. Even though Bay Minette avoided major impacts, this was a valuable opportunity to strengthen our communication systems and reinforce how we operate as a unified team.”

A storm that served as a drill

A common thread ran through the three mayors’ accounts: a storm that spared their cities still served as a real-world test. Each pointed to early preparation, coordination among police, fire and public works, and quick work by utility partners as the reasons their communities recovered within a day or two.

Local state of emergency declarations, like those approved in Robertsdale and Bay Minette, allow cities to move resources quickly, request mutual aid from neighboring governments and take public safety measures such as curfews or road closures if conditions require. Cities also use storms like Isaias to review emergency operations plans, update contact lists and identify weak spots, the kind of gaps Bass described in Spanish Fort.

Storm readiness for residents

Hurricane season in the Atlantic runs through Nov. 30. Emergency managers encourage Baldwin County residents to use the lessons of Isaias to update their own plans:

• Keep an emergency kit with water, nonperishable food, medications, flashlights and batteries.
• Know your evacuation zone and have a plan for where to go.
• Have large trees near your home checked by a licensed arborist, especially those showing signs of rot or insect damage.
• Sign up for alerts from your city and from Baldwin County Emergency Management.
• Report outages directly to your utility provider.

For Spanish Fort, Robertsdale and Bay Minette, Isaias will be remembered as a close call. For their neighbors to the east, in Brewton and the Florida Panhandle, the recovery is still underway.