Just days after Hurricane Helene devastated Florida’s Gulf Coast, the most severe impacts were felt in Pinellas County and the Nature Coast region, which encompasses Pasco, Hernando, Citrus, Levy, Dixie, Taylor, Jefferson, and Wakulla counties.
Coastal towns such as Cedar Key, Steinhatchee, Keaton Beach, Spring Warrior Fish Camp, and Horseshoe Beach experienced nearly 20 feet of storm surge, destroying nearly everything in their path and resulting in tragic loss of life for those who didn’t evacuate in time.
YOUR VOICES: What did you experience during and after Helene? Tell us
Further south, the coastal towns of western Pasco and Hernando counties — including Tarpon Springs, Hudson, Palm Harbor, Aripeka, and Hernando Beach — also bore the brunt of the storm. Despite warnings, few anticipated the extent of the storm surge, which flooded homes and displaced thousands of families.
Even though Hurricane Helene has long passed, her impact continues to resonate with full-time residents and snowbirds hoping to enjoy the fall and winter in paradise. Many now face the daunting task of recovering and rebuilding their lives.
Octavio Jones, a visual journalist and frequent contributor to WUSF, shares the stories of those affected.
Marline Ritzenthaler and her husband, residents of Hernando Beach, were displaced by the storm surge and are now temporarily living in a nearby hotel with their pet chihuahuas. Marline said they tried to protect their house the best they could, and "prayed and hoped for the best."
Derek Anderson and his wife, Jessica, reside in the tranquil enclave of Aripeka, where they had just renovated their Airbnb, “The Little White House.” Anderson takes us on a tour of a house that was severely flooded. He said they recently spent $70,000 to remodel it and list it on Airbnb. "It took the appliances and completely turned them upside down," Anderson said.
Carol Judy, a fourth-generation Floridian, lives in her grandparents’ house, one of the first homes built in Aripeka. Judy describes how she, her husband, other family members, and their cats escaped the house and climbed on the roof for 6 1/2 hours with "70 to 80 plus winds blowing us around and bands of rain coming around and just beating down on us."
Gruber lives in Auburndale and returns to Aripeka three to four times a week. She came back to Pine Island to survey the damage. "It still hasn't sunk in. This doesn't look my house," she said. "The island is just so different. It's just not real to me yet."
Hale's grandparents built the house in 1970, and her family has been in Aripeka — an old fishing village — since the 1800s and helped build the community. The same families have been there since the 1800s, and she shares a story of how her uncle was Babe Ruth's fishing guide.
