STEINHATCHEE, Fla. – As Hurricane Helene swept through northern Florida, residents across the Big Bend area are grappling with widespread damage caused by a massive storm surge.
Streets, roadways, and piers were left submerged, especially in coastal towns like Steinhatchee, where locals witnessed water levels reach unprecedented heights.
In Naples, the scene was similar as storm surge flooded streets and damaged infrastructure.
In Steinhatchee, a local marina saw storm surges that came close to the “unsurvivable” levels forecasted.
Kurt Drafting, who leads a rescue team on the ground, described the devastation.
“We saw probably a 10-foot storm surge,” he said. “Houses close to the dock area were completely inundated with water, mud and sewage.”
Standing on the steps of a flooded home in the area, you can see the surge rose nearly nine feet. While no official measurements have been released yet, the evidence is undeniable.
“There are signs of how high the surge got everywhere you look,” one resident said while pointing out water lines on homes and debris scattered across roads.
Across the street, Dale Bryant and his wife Sherri’s home stood just high enough to avoid severe damage.
“The water here got up to just the back of the bird bath,” Dale Bryant said, recalling how they stayed through the storm.
“It was just a constant loud roar,” he added. “It didn’t give up for three hours straight, and the wind kept picking up. We kept wondering what was going to go next.”
For those less fortunate, the damage was more severe. In nearby Keaton Beach, homes were washed away, and nothing remains.
“It’s just sad in Keaton Beach, there’s nothing left,” Dale Bryant said.
Just up the street, another home was swept off its foundation and onto the road, a haunting reminder of the storm’s power. Debris is everywhere, leaving many in the community devastated.
Allen Davis, who evacuated before the storm, now faces an uphill battle to return home. “Everything’s flooded,” he said. “This doesn’t compare to anything we’ve ever seen here.”
The clean-up is just beginning, but the scars of the storm will remain long after the waters recede.
Despite mandatory evacuations, some residents chose to stay behind. “Every year people get a little more desensitized,” Drafting added. “Three or four storms now within 18 months, and people run out of resources and just get tired of running.”
As northern Florida begins the long recovery process, residents are bracing for yet another challenge in a relentless hurricane season.
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