After weeks of repairs and community support following hurricanes Helene and Milton, the Clearwater Marine Aquarium (CMA) reopened to the public with "Aqua Lanterns: A Chinese Festival of Lights." This event features beautiful illuminated sculptures alongside marine life. The hurricanes caused significant damage to the facility, requiring extensive repairs in areas like the surgical suite, gift shop, and newly opened manatee rehabilitation tanks.
According to WFLA, the storm surge brought in four feet of water that resulted in thousands of dollars lost in fish food due to lack of power and the need for many areas of the aquarium to be gutted, despite the proactive efforts of the ride-out team credited with hastening the recovery, CMA suffered substantial setbacks, including damage to life support systems and the relocation of many of the animals, such as manatees to facilities including Zoo Tampa and sea turtles to Gumbo Limbo Nature Center as reported by WUSF.
Kelly Martin, CMA's Vice President of Zoological Care highlighted the critical support received from community partners and donors that facilitated the swift reopening, in a statement obtained by Bay News 9, she invited those able to "contribute online at cmaquarium.org" or by calling the institution, emphasizing the continued need for financial aid to advance repairs and replace crucial equipment.
Marsha Strickhouser, a media specialist at CMA, elaborated on the role of the dedicated staff in the recovery efforts, "Well, we have a very passionate and dedicated staff thank goodness and so they were here every day cleaning things up, mopping things, ripping the dry wall out, and doing all the things that needed to be done," she told WFLA, the reopening is seen not only as a return to normalcy but also as an invitation to experience the aquarium in a different light, literally, by the glow of the "Aqua Lanterns" and possibly as a brief respite for community members wearied by hurricane disruptions.
Now functioning as one of only 10 manatee hospitals in the state, CMA is part of the Manatee Rescue and Rehabilitation Partnership, which coordinates with various institutions, including Sea World, ZooTampa, and Mote Marine Laboratory, to treat and care for these gentle creatures, CMA plans to continue this significant work as the facility recovers and rebuilds, while also offering the community a chance to engage with the marine realm in a newly lit perspective through December.
