Tampa Fire Rescue responded to a hazardous material incident at Port Tampa Bay on Friday night and told residents of Harbor Island, Tampa to shelter in place. The agency said people in the area should stay inside with windows and doors closed until further notice.
The fire department posted on X that Fire and HazMat personnel were on scene mitigating the incident. Its notice also said, “As an abundance of caution, a shelter in place notification has been issued for residents of Harbour Island.”
Harbor Island across Garrison Channel
Harbour Island sits across the Garrison Channel from downtown Tampa, Water Street and Sparkman Wharf. That puts the shelter-in-place order in a neighborhood close to a busy stretch of the city’s waterfront, where a hazmat response can affect movement in and out of the area.
Tampa Fire Rescue said updates would follow. The wording of the alert also showed two parts of the response at once: the department described the step as being taken “as an abundance of caution,” while Fire and HazMat personnel were still on scene working to mitigate the incident.
Fire and HazMat on scene
The department’s second post on X gave more detail: “Tampa Fire rescue is on scene of a hazmat incident located @PortTampaBay. Fire & HazMat personnel are on scene, mitigating the incident. ⚠️As an abundance of caution, a shelter in place notification has been issued for residents of Harbor Island.⚠️ Updates to follow.” For residents, the immediate instruction is simple: stay inside and keep openings closed until the department changes the alert.
What caused the incident at Port Tampa Bay was not answered in the alert. The remaining question for residents is how long the order will last, and the only confirmed next step is that Tampa Fire Rescue said it will provide updates.
