MANY Florida residents are still without power and running water following the devastation caused by Hurricane Milton, which hit the state on Wednesday. Local communities are now beginning the challenging process of post-hurricane recovery.
St. Petersburg residents describe the hurricane as the strongest in over a century, with many homes severely damaged by falling trees and structural collapse.
“It was the strongest winds we’ve ever had here in St. Petersburg in 103 years. We were hit with the north side of the winds, so we were bearing the biggest impact of the winds here. And because we’ve had three hurricanes, this was our third hurricane in a row. We had one in August, one in September, and this was the third one in October. With all the winds and the rains, pushed on these trees, and this was the third hurricane, was too much for these trees. The big tree fell down, the other one fell on our house,” stated Mark Patricia, a local resident of St. Petersburg.
“You can see the roots, they just tumble over. There’s no power, no water. Because the roof, there’s a hole in the roof, so there was some water damage on the floor. So, we can’t stay there. We don’t know how long is it gonna take for us to go back to normalcy,” said Seth Patricia, wife of Mr. Patricia.
While the state government has deployed resources like the National Guard and police to assist with recovery, many residents are frustrated by the federal government’s perceived inaction.
“I mean, it’s not normal, and lots of places are closed. Like, gas stations are closed, restaurants are closed because there’s no power in some of those places. We have seen the National Guard come through, like, the first day that we came back. We were starting to work on our house and clean it out and the National Guard came through, and they stopped by our house twice asking if we needed food or water or tarps. So, as far as I know, that’s most of what I’ve seen. I’ve seen a lot of policemen out handling stoplights that are non-functional. There’s a policeman at every intersection where the lights aren’t working. That’s the extent of what I know that they’ve done. Right now, we are kind of at a standstill with rebuilding because we don’t have insurance on our home. We’re in a non-flood zone. So, we don’t have insurance to cover the damage from this storm and the previous storm,” said Rachel, another resident.
Locals are also voicing their frustration over the federal government’s inaction, saying that it should focus more on the well-being of its citizens.
“We’re sending hundreds of billions of dollars to the Ukraine and we’re not keeping any reserve for when we have things like this. I don’t see the federal government actually doing anything in this area. I haven’t heard of any of them doing anything in this area. The state government, on the other hand, I have to give credit. They’re doing everything they can. So, I think we’re probably going to make it, but it’s just going to be rough,” William Dahm, local resident stressed.
“Honestly, there’s really not a whole lot that I think the government can do than what they’re already doing. And that’s just for the simple fact that they just don’t have the resources that they need in order to do it,” Tommy, resident remarks.
With many residents left to rebuild on their own, and without adequate insurance, the path to recovery after Hurricane Milton remains uncertain for Florida’s affected communities.
