Hurricane Frances -- Riding it out

Zych’s Certified Auto Service on State Route 436 in Altamonte Springs sustained damage from Hurricane Frances.  (GARY W. GREEN/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

Furniture and other items lie strewn in the street in downtown Ft. Pierce following Hurricane Frances.  (ROBERT SULLIVAN/GETTY IMAGES)

A vehicle plows through the rain on Lake Avenue in Belle Isle on Sunday afternoon.  (JULIE FLETCHER/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

Residents of the Sabal Creek neighborhood in Longwood work together to remove a tree blocking the street following Hurricane Frances. Residents said a doctor who lived in the neighborhood had to leave to get to a local hospital.  (GARY W. GREEN/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

Damage can be seen on a trailer park home from Hurricane Frances after the eye made landfall in Fort Pierce.  (JOSE JIMENEZ/GETTY IMAGES)

A sink hole opened along Interstate 95 just north on 10th Avenue in Lake Worth a day after Hurricane Frances passed through Palm Beach County.  (CARLINE JEAN/SOUTH FLORIDA SUN-SENTINEL)

A bicyclist makes his way across the deserted streets near Mills Avenue and Colonial Drive during Hurricane Frances.  (JOHN RAOUX/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

Orlando Utilities Commission workers assess the scene near Mills Avenue and Rollins Street the morning after Hurricane Frances slowly passed through Orlando.  (JOHN RAOUX/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

Mary Ann Copley, 72, of Micco, Florida, picks up her American Flag as she works through the destruction caused to her carport, garage and workshed attached to her manufactured home.  (RED HUBER/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

A traffic light hangs in the road as Vero Beach police officers prepare to direct traffic after Hurricane Frances  (BOBBY COKER/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

Nickie Norris of Gifford looks at the damaged caused to her her home in Gifford Manor. Gifford is a small town near Vero Beach.  (BOBBY COKER/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

(Left to right) Steve Davis, David Gonzalez and Teddy Weppelmann take a chance and run out to feel the weather from Hurricane Frances on Sunday morning.  (JULIE FLETCHER/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

Winds from Hurricane Frances damage an Exxon gas station in Fort Pierce after the eye made landfall on Sunday.  (JOSE JIMENEZ/GETTY IMAGES)

The American flag in front of The Waverly building in downtown Orlando has been shredded by the winds and rain from Hurricane Frances.  (JULIE FLETCHER/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

The fountain at Lake Eola has its water bursts thrown about from the winds of Hurricane Frances.  (JULIE FLETCHER/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

A pair of stray dogs walk near Lake Margaret Drive in south Orlando, trying to find a dry place to stay. Streets in Orlando were empty as people stayed home or in shelters in anticipation of Hurricane Frances.  (TOM BURTON/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

Gustavo Juliao, 26, of Orlando, stares in disbelief as the wind and rain pummel Orange Avenue in downtown Orlando near the office building where he works. Juliao and some of his co-workers had permisison to spend the night in the building.  (JIM CARCHIDI/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

Diamelin Lopez and her dog, Smokey, take advantage of a break in Hurricane Frances to go for a walk along Kaley Avenue in Orlando.  (TOM BURTON/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

MJ’s Saloon in Titusville is one of the few places still open during Hurricane Frances, despite the town being hit by winds exceeding 50 knots on Sunday.  (BRUCE WEAVER/GETTY IMAGES)

Danielle Marks (left) and Harriet Robson, both from London, watch a movie on a portable DVD player as other guests prepare their beach chairs to sleep on at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress.  (SHOUN A. HILL/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

High winds from hurricane Frances rip down the side from the downtown Marriott in Orlando.  (TODD PACK/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

Debris torn from a nearby building covers the intersection of Orange Avenue and Washington Street in Downtown Orlando as a CFN13 newscrew, cameraman Mike Slifke and reporter Alicia Rivas, wait for passers by.  (JIM CARCHIDI/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

Hurricane-force winds from hurricane Frances pound a gasoline station as the eye makes landfall on the eastern central coast of Florida today in Florida.  (JOSE JIMENEZ/GETTY IMAGES)

Richard Feinberg and Janna Barbary walk with their dogs in Melbourne.  (GERARDO MORA/GETTY IMAGES)

Gusty winds punish boats at the Fort Pierce Marina as Hurricane Frances approaches.  (HILDA M PEREZ/ORLANDO SENTINEL)

Waves breach the outer deck of Chuck’s Seafood Restaurant on the coast in Fort Pierce.  (CHRIS HONDROS/GETTY IMAGES)

Fallen trees cover the road in Palm Beach County after Hurricane Frances.  (ROBERT SULLIVAN/AFP/GETTY IMAGES)

Storm winds from Hurricane Frances bend the trees and whip up the surf in the Stuart.  (RICK LOOMIS/LOS ANGELES TIMES)