BOKEELIA, Fla. — Appliances and furniture now line the streets in Bokeelia after Hurricane Helene brought 3-5 feet of storm surge.
"I've lived through Dana, from Dana on, and I have never seen anything like this," said Robert Ballard, a lifelong resident of Pine Island.
After 54 years, Ballard's house that's been passed down by generations still stands, but inside Ballard is back to square one. After not having any flooding from Ian and only having water intrude through the damaged roof from Charley, he said he stayed behind this storm not imagining to have to start all over again.
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"All the hurricanes we've had, it's never flooded, and this hurricane's 150 miles offshore, and we get flooded. No rhyme or reason too," said Ballard. "When it got out of control, I just started moving things up, and was able to save a lot of stuff."
Robert showed me these pictures from when the storm surge from Helene started flooding his home late at night:
"It was over my knees when I got outside in the driveway and so I spent the rest of the night in my truck in the garage," said Ballard.
He's in the same boat as many of his neighbors.
"I was out there sitting on my porch, and when I realized how fast it was rising, I went into crisis mode," said Aaron Barreda, Greater Pine Island Alliance founder.
The Greater Pine Island Alliance is a group of islanders helping other islanders after a disaster like Ian or Helene. They have been working tirelessly since Ian and now adding the damage from Helene to their workload.
"We are all resilient, and we love to be Pine Island Strong, but it does get to you when it hits time after time," said Barreda.
Barreda says, that right now, the organization and island need labor and financial support while they get back on their feet.
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