Most all of us count on regular service from the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) six days of the week. But from attacks on mail carriers to natural disasters, there are countless reasons as to why the USPS might suspend deliveries to your neighborhood or close your local post office. Of course, with a responsibility to provide postal amenities to all Americans on a regular basis, the Postal Service tries to only curtail operations when it's absolutely necessary to do so. As it turns out, the agency recently decided that this was the case in several areas—and service will be unavailable in some of these places "until further notice." Read on to find out where the USPS is suspending service now.
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The USPS does suspend services in certain places for extended periods of time.
With various suspensions, the USPS has made it clear that it will keep operations on pause as long as is necessary. Back in February, the Postal Service withdrew mail delivery from a neighborhood in Avondale, Ohio, after a postal carrier was attacked by a loose dog. But as of Sept. 28, the community is still without service six months later, because the agency says the "dog continues to roam the neighborhood unrestrained," ABC-affiliate WCPO in Cincinnati reported.
In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a post office in the East Falls neighborhood just reopened on Sept. 30, after being closed for roughly a year because of flooding from Hurricane Ida, according to local radio station WHYY-FM.
Now, Americans in other parts of the country are experiencing extended disruptions to their postal service because of another natural disaster.
The agency is now halting operations in other areas until further notice.
Certain residents in one state could be without postal service for a while. The USPS released an update to its Service Alerts page on Oct. 3, warning that some areas in Florida are still experiencing disrupted service in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian. According to the alert, operations at some post offices in the following cities remain temporarily suspended: Balm, Bokeelia, Captiva, Downtown Fort Myers, Downton Naples, Everglades City, Fort Myers Beach, Nocatee, Ona, Pineland, Placida, Saint James City, Sanibel, and Venus.
The Postal Service noted that the suspended service in these areas is in response to Hurricane Ian and said that they will remain as such "until further notice." But for residents in these areas, the USPS has provided an alternate location for each impacted facility—which are listed on the agency's alert.
Many places in Florida have had their postal service restored.
The Postal Service started halting operations in various parts of Florida on Sept. 27 amid the approach of Hurricane Ian. More than 200 USPS locations were closed throughout the state that same day. But some post offices were already starting to reopen as early as Sept. 29. As of now, facilities in major cities such as Daytona Beach, Key West, and Tampa are already back up and running.
On Oct. 2, the USPS also posted an update alerting Americans that "all retail and delivery operations" had been restored for facilities in the following three-digit ZIP Code areas: 328, 329, 342, and 347. Later that day, the agency issued another release cautioning customers to be patient as operations start back up after the deadly storm.
"Please help our carriers by limiting your questions and allowing them to deliver the mail to the community. Remember they are diligently working through many obstacles," the USPS said. "To ensure mail delivery to your affected area, please ensure that debris is cleared around your mailbox. If your mailbox is badly damaged or destroyed, please provide a secure receptacle with your address clearly displayed for your letter carrier to leave your mail at your residence. Mail cannot be delivered unless a receptacle is provided."
The USPS also suspended service in other states because of the hurricane.
Florida is not the only state that has had its postal service affected by the recent disaster. Hurricane Ian made its first U.S. landfall on Sept. 28 in Florida, but then it continued up the East Coast and hit South Carolina two days later on Sept. 30, per ABC News. As a result, the USPS suspended operations in certain parts of South Carolina and Georgia as well. In an update on Oct. 1, the agency said affected facilities in the following South Carolina cities had already resumed operations: Beaufort, Berkeley, Charleston, Dorchester, Georgetown, Hampton, Horry, and Jasper. Now, all are up and running.
"The Postal Service in active recovery mode, following Hurricane Ian. We are proud to announce that all Post Offices in South Carolina have resumed operations," the agency's South Carolina branch said in an Oct. 1 news release. "This includes retail service, mail delivery and drop shipments. The Postal Service appreciates its customers and their understanding as we temporarily adjusted operations for their safety and that of our employees."
Meanwhile, the one impacted post office in Georgia is still listed as temporarily closed. On Sept. 28, the USPS temporarily suspended all operations at a facility in Sapelo Island, Georgia, "due to the approach of Hurricane Ian," and there has been no update since to indicate that this has changed. "We will continue to monitor weather conditions and restore service when it is safe to do so," the agency's Georgia branch said when it announced the suspension.
