Will keep the mail service from completing their appointed rounds. That ends at the doorstep of a big, bad Hurricane named Ian, as Fort Myers Beach residents found out. David Walton is from Corporate Communications out of Orlando at the U.S. Postal Service. We asked him your questions. Here’s what he had to say…
BTR: Will the post office establish a location on Fort Myers Beach?
Walton: The Postal Service already has a location established on Fort Myers Beach. Operations are currently temporarily suspended, due to damage from Hurricane Ian. We are working hard to resume operations as soon as possible.
BTR: We understand you were leasing the building on the beach. Do you know if that building will be rebuilt and the post office will be back there?
Walton: We are working with the landlord toward resuming operations as soon as possible. Some questions can be directed to the property owner.
BTR: When will you restart service to homes?
Walton: The Postal Service delivers mail where we can safely do so. Due to debris, road conditions and other factors, the Postal Service has been unable to re-establish street deliveries in Fort Myers Beach at this time. In the interim, we are strongly encouraging customers to file a Change of Address (COA) request. COA requests may be filed at www.usps.com, the Postal Service’s website that is available to customers 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
BTR: If you do not have a start date, will you establish a location closer to the beach for residents to pick up their mail. Jetport Loop is quite far for them to drive.
Walton: At this time, the Postal Service continues to provide mail pickup service at the Fort Myers Processing & Distribution Center, 14080 Jetport Loop, Fort Myers, FL 33913. There are currently no plans to establish an alternate location at this time.
BTR: People are being told to go to Jetport Loop then being told they have no mail. What’s happening to their mail?
Walton: We apologize to any customer who may have been inconvenienced in this way. The Postal Service is utilizing all its resources to ensure customers can retrieve mail and packages; however, due to the volume of mail, we are advising customers that they must pick up items on a regular basis (preferably weekly at a minimum). One alternative is to file a Change of Address, as mentioned above, to allow their mail and packages to be sent to an alternate location, thus eliminating the need to travel to the Fort Myers facility.
BTR: With so many people on the beach dealing with insurance companies and other issues that they need the mail for to get their lives back together where does Fort Myers Beach fit on the priority scale?
Walton: The United States Postal Service is part of the fabric of this nation. After any natural disaster, our top priority is quickly reconnecting customers with their mail, including in Fort Myers Beach. We know how much our customers depend on their mail and the Postal Service is glad we were able to provide service in some areas in a matter of days, following Hurricane Ian. Unfortunately, swift restoration of service was not feasible in some areas, such as Fort Myers Beach, where the Post Office was badly damaged, vehicles were completely destroyed and neighborhoods left in shambles. We continue to focus on full resumption of all operations as soon as possible and we appreciate our customers’ patience.
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I forwarded my mail to a temporary address several weeks ago. Now it is coming to light that several items have been returned to sender: like grandpa’s Christmas letter with gift cards for the kids. Bank statements from one bank get sent back while a different bank gets forwarded. I drove to Jetport today to inquire as to why the return to sender if some of my other mail is being forwarded? The answer was “it’s the Page field airports post office” mistake not jetports mistake & I should call the postmaster at that location. I called. Big surprise – no call back. Ugg…this shouldn’t be so hard.
I placed a temporary change of address at my USPS branch in Louisville, KY and it was never processed. Now, I will be leaving my KY address and traveling during the holidays before settleingback in the Fort Myers area for the winter. I cannot do a change of address with my upcoming traveling. I have tried to contact the distribution center to ask them to hold my mail until January when I arrive in FLorida (waiting for an insurance check that was mailed instead of wired – oops) but it’s impossible to join anyone there. I understand the issues USPS is dealing with but there should be much better communication. Many customers are in the dark about thier mail.
Wont get that 10 minutes back. Typical government.
Wow! So much BS! Way to take responsibility USPS, NOT!
What a bunch of crap! His answers are a joke ..
I placed a temporary change of address two weeks after the storm. No mail is coming through. It’s all getting the little yellow tag: return to sender…undeliverable as addressed. On November 4 my insurance company informed me they had mailed my checks. As of a week ago I still had not received them so the insurance company is voiding and reissuing the checks. I’ve written the governor, the postal service and even President Biden. This is typical government bs.
Totally unacceptable!!!
So frustrating. We did the change of address and now they are holding our Amazon packages. They need to get this figured out as soon as possible. Ridiculous
Change our address to where? We are living there. Why can’t they sort the mail elsewhere and deliver it to us? Amazon, UPS and Fed Ex don’t have stations on our island, but bring our packages. Why can’t the PO do the same????
Typical pushback from the USPS. Have you been in communication with Governor Desantis?
I was and this was the response
Your best source of assistance is the United States Postmaster General and the United States Postal Service Board of Governors. Contact information is provided below:
Postmaster General
United States Postal Service
475 L’ Enfant Plaza, SW
Washington, D.C. 20260-0010
Toll-free Telephone: (800) 275-8777
For further assistance you may wish to contact your U.S. Congressional delegation. Contact information for your U.S. Senators and Representative can be obtained online at http://www.usa.gov/elected-officials.
He should resign. No real recognition of impact on people not receiving mail except with a 2 hour trip up and back.It would be easy for him to say yes we can arrange for Bonita pick up.Unacceptable for US taxpayers paying for USPS .
Us taxpayers do not fund the usps
So sorry I started my day with this bs nonsense.
Like every other political stream of non answers it provides no hope of having our mail service restored any time soon. I have the following comments:
Doesn’t seem like anyone from USPS is working hard toward resuming operations as soon as possible. If FPL was as lackadaisical, we wouldn’t have power back on for years.
How dare USPS direct the affected residents of FMB back to the landlord. That’s the job of USPS and to provide information back to US.
The condition of Fort Myers Beach roads are remarkably cleared for deliveries. We have received deliveries by UPS, Fedex, Amazon, Walmart, etc. So I call bs on that no answer. As far as the COA, NO NO NO. Does he understand that most insurance claim checks especially those from NFIP and FEMA cannot be forwarded and are returned to the sender. And for those of us who have been fortunate recently to be able to move back into our home, where should we have our mail forwarded? We don’t all have 2nd homes or are no longer in temporary housing/rentals.
Jetport Loop is a 35/40 minute trip each way. This couldn’t be more inconvenient and takes away valuable time we need to continue to rehab about home. And mail goes missing in this wharehouse. The worse thing is surepost where the USPS makes the final delivery for packages initially handled and shipped by UPS, Amazon, Walmart and FedEx. (And when we order, don’t know how the package will be shipped…) I have to go in with complete tracking info so that USPS will search for the packages. WARNING, if you have a COA or mail forwarding, you will be charged for the additional shipping.
I’ve never been advised that I need to pick up my mail weekly. How about you bring my mail to FMB? There are about 6-8 homes inhabited now on my street alone (all raised homes). DELIVER MY MAIL – I even have a standing mailbox.
Sorry but I needed to get that off my chest.
We are out of patience with the USPS. Do your job. Nobody seems to really have a care and any sense of urgency.
Not the fault of BTR, but Waltons answers were completely worthless and a waste of time.
Wow! What a bunch of non-answers!!!