MANASOTA KEY, Fla. — Residents in the Gulf to Bay community are clearing their property of sand and debris once again after Hurricane Milton.
Watch Fox 4's Alex Orenczuk report on recovery efforts after Hurricane Milton at the Gulf to Bay community:
Hurricane Helene first brought water and sand into the yards and homes of several of the residents there, then Milton’s storm surge brought even more just two weeks later. Some homes were destroyed, while others sustained just minor damage.
“These homes were so incredibly beautiful and they’ve lost it all,” said HOA President Annmarie Miller.
Miller told Fox 4 that she believes much of the structural damage to the homes in the community was caused by debris from Helene being thrown by Milton’s storm surge.
“After Helene all of us had worked very hard to get our homes back up and running,” said Miller. “We were in pretty good shape, but five days before the hurricane (Milton) we asked the county to come and pick up all the debris on the road and it never happened. It's just a shame because this really didn’t have to happen. I mean of course we had a storm surge, we had catastrophe here but a lot of it could have been avoided.”
Even as Miller toured the damaged property with Fox 4, she remained positive and said that the community will rebuild and restore what was lost.
“You’re not going to stop my joy, you’re not going to steal my joy, we’re coming back, we are hurricane strong,” said Miller. “That’s what I can say for Gulf to Bay.”
