Hurricane season in Lee County: debris before and after a storm

Official preparation links for each Lee County jurisdiction, the county’s debris set-out rules, and an honest comparison of public storm-debris collection and hiring a private hauler.

Updated October 14, 2026

Before a storm

Lee County’s hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30. The county’s hurricane page links its yearly All Hazards Guide, the evacuation-zone lookup, the LeePrepares app and AlertLee emergency notifications. Start there, then check your own city, town or village page below.

Yard work has a timing rule. Lee County Solid Waste recommends pre-hurricane yard maintenance in March, April and May: cut back branches that touch your house, pool cage or shed, thin foliage, and put the trimmings out on your regular collection day. Once a storm has been named or a hurricane watch or warning has been issued, the county asks residents not to cut down trees or do major yard work, and not to start construction projects that create debris unless absolutely necessary to protect life and property.

Clear loose items that could become projectiles, and put them at the curb on your regular collection day. The county says regular garbage, recycling and yard-waste collection continues until sustained tropical-storm-force winds reach 39 mph, as long as roads and bridges are open. Service may be suspended and facilities closed early to prepare for the storm.

Know the set-out rules before you need them. Lee County publishes a printable diagram, “Hurricane Clean Up – Separating Your Debris,” also available in Spanish and Haitian Creole. It shows six separate piles: normal household trash, vegetative debris, construction and demolition debris (including furniture and mattresses), appliances and white goods, electronics, and household hazardous waste, which should go to the county’s Topaz Court facility, not the curb. Sanibel also asks residents to dispose of household hazardous waste before hurricane season begins.

If you live in a private or gated community, ask your HOA or property manager about a Right of Entry form. Lee County says FEMA rules require a current Right of Entry and Indemnification form on file before disaster debris crews can enter a private or gated community in unincorporated Lee County. The form only has to be done once a year, and the county encourages HOAs to file it before the season starts. The City of Fort Myers has its own Right of Entry form for properties on private roads, and says FEMA requires the HOA or condominium association’s insurance to be submitted with it.

Official preparation pages by jurisdiction:

Lee County (all residents; county service areas): leegov.com/hurricane and leegov.com/solidwaste/hurricane
City of Fort Myers: Emergency Debris Removal Right of Entry Form (fortmyers.gov/2362)
Cape Coral: Be Prepared – Severe Tropical Weather, with the city’s 2026 Hurricane Guide
Bonita Springs: Hurricane preparedness (Plan & Prepare)
Estero: Hurricane Preparation
Fort Myers Beach: Hurricane Preparedness (including re-entry passes)
Sanibel: Household Hazardous Waste Collection (dispose before the season) and city storm notices

What each city said after its last storm

Every jurisdiction in Lee County runs its own storm-debris program, and the rules are issued for each storm. None had a 2025 or 2026 program posted when we checked on October 13 and 14, 2026, so the notes below come from the last storm each one handled. Even the number of piles changed from storm to storm and from page to page. Use them to know what to expect, then follow the instructions issued after the next storm.

FEMA’s own guidance says your local officials decide what can be collected near the public right-of-way, and that removing debris from private property is generally the property owner’s responsibility. When a contractor the owner hires does demolition or repairs, removing those materials is generally part of the contractor’s job.

Condos, apartments and mobile-home parks: Lee County’s commercial debris page says commercial property owners are typically responsible for clearing their own debris, and that FEMA counts apartments, condominiums and trailer parks as commercial property. After Hurricane Milton, those properties in unincorporated Lee County got one collection pass, and a community without a Right of Entry form on file isn’t eligible for collection at all. Ask your association before the season whether its form is filed.

Unincorporated Lee County (standing page): loose piles in the right-of-way only, separated as the county diagram shows; nothing bagged; clear of power lines, water meters, mailboxes and hydrants. Crews don’t enter private property. Gated and private communities need a Right of Entry and Indemnification form on file, renewed each year.
City of Fort Myers: the City asks gated and private-road communities to file its Emergency Debris Removal Right of Entry form before any storm (notice posted April 30, 2026), with the association’s insurance attached. Its everyday yard-waste rule: piles within 4 feet of the pavement edge and up to 10 cubic yards; larger piles cost extra.
Cape Coral (Hurricane Milton, 2024): four curbside piles (household garbage, appliances, yard waste, and construction and demolition debris), with nothing under low wires or trees or near hydrants and mailboxes. Garbage in a 40-gallon can or a heavy bag of 50 pounds or less, and food removed from appliances. One pass each for construction debris and vegetation. Drop-off sites were for residents with ID only, with no commercial or contractor loads. Gated and private communities needed a Right of Entry form on file.
Bonita Springs (Hurricane Milton, 2024): loose debris only, on the public right-of-way, which the city defined as the strip from the street to the sidewalk, ditch, utility pole or easement. Piles at least 4 feet from mailboxes, water meters, hydrants and other above-ground utilities. The final push asked for three piles (yard waste, construction debris and appliances), storm debris only. Private and gated communities needed a Right of Entry and Indemnification form on file (2022).
Estero (Hurricane Ian, 2022): two piles, construction debris and vegetation, with nothing in plastic bags or cans; everyday trash went out for regular Lee County pickup. When the program ended in January 2023, the Village’s options for leftover debris were regular curbside pickup, the state’s private-property program, or hiring a private contractor.
Fort Myers Beach (Hurricane Milton, 2024): four separate piles (electronics, construction debris, vegetation and appliances), with vegetation unbagged and food removed from appliances. A 2023 Town notice said Estero Boulevard from the Matanzas Pass Bridge south was Lee County’s responsibility. The Town’s storm page says that program has ended and points residents to Waste Management.
Sanibel: the City’s website had no storm-debris page on October 13, 2026. Its everyday vegetation rules: within 6 feet of the curb, pieces no longer than 4 feet, and never on empty lots. Watch the City’s notices and AlertLee after a storm.

After a storm: county collection or a private hauler?

After a declared storm, public debris collection is a county or city program. Lee County says it contracts specialized vendors to collect storm debris and announces clean-up dates through press releases, its website, social media and local media. Its rules for residents:

• Debris must be placed in the right of way for collection. Collection crews will not enter your private property to remove debris. • Set debris out in separate piles, as shown in the county diagram. Do not bag storm debris. • Keep each pile clear of electrical lines, water meters, mailboxes and fire hydrants. Don’t stack or lean debris on trees, poles or other structures. • Anything placed from the sidewalk toward your house is in the “no pickup zone.” If you have no sidewalk, ditch or utility line in front, place debris at the edge of your property before the curb. • Keep hazardous waste separate and call Lee County Solid Waste for disposal options. • Crews go street to street and collect only debris at the curb, and emergency access roads are cleared first. The county says there is no schedule for when debris will be collected from your neighborhood. A truck may take only part of a pile on one pass and come back if the debris is at the curb before the announced final date.

Depending on how severe the storm is, Lee County may open citizen drop-off sites for Lee County residents only, with no more than 5 cubic yards dumped at one time. The county lists those rules on its hurricane page.

Cities run their own programs after an event. After Hurricane Milton in 2024, Cape Coral said that after a storm that severely damages buildings it hires a contract debris hauler, and debris must be placed in the right-of-way correctly. Bonita Springs asked residents to put storm debris on the public right-of-way, unbagged, at least four feet from mailboxes, water meters, fire hydrants and other above-ground utilities. On Fort Myers Beach, the Town’s Milton page says that program’s debris removal has ended and points residents to Waste Management. Rules and dates change with each storm, so check the current page for your address.

When a private hauler helps: public collection may be the better option when it meets your need. Paid removal may help when carrying items out, a mixed load or arranging access is the issue, for example when the damage is inside the house, in the backyard or behind a gate, or when you’re away and need someone to handle it. A private hauler is not part of the county or city debris program.

Fort Myers Junk Removal is a private junk removal company. Once the property is safe to enter, we carry out damaged furniture, appliances and debris from inside the house, the backyard or behind the gate, and haul it away in one visit. Standing water, heavy mold, sewage, roof damage or structural damage need a mitigation, remediation or roofing specialist first; tell us about them and we’ll plan the removal around that work. For water-damaged contents, see the flood-damaged contents removal page. When you’re ready, text photos of the damage, call, or use the free estimate form.

Sources: Lee County Solid Waste: Hurricane debris and garbage collection (checked 2026-10-14); Lee County Solid Waste: “Hurricane Clean Up – Separating Your Debris” diagram (PDF) (checked 2026-10-02); City of Cape Coral: Hurricane Debris Procedures (Hurricane Milton, PDF) (checked 2026-10-02); City of Bonita Springs: Disaster Recovery Debris Pickup (Hurricane Milton) (checked 2026-10-02); Town of Fort Myers Beach: Storms (Hurricane Milton resources) (checked 2026-10-14)

Hurricane season in Lee County: debris before and after a storm

Before a storm

What each city said after its last storm

After a storm: county collection or a private hauler?

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