October 10, 2024: Vehicle flooded at apartment complex in Clearwater, Florida after Hurricane Milton passes Brian R. Smith
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Lydier Rodriguez and Sandra Escalona scrambled to safety on the floor after Hurricane Milton’s gush of water flooded their Florida apartment. The normally calm residential facility for the elderly was a scene of danger and drama.
Hours later, after a strong storm hit on Wednesday evening, they found themselves in their residence (a series of two-story apartment buildings), where the same emergency services that had rescued them helped other elderly people escape. I watched as I helped her do it.
The complex is located in low-lying areas on Florida’s west coast near Tampa Bay, on a street that is currently flooded. Police and firefighters moved from building to building on boats Thursday, helping people reach land.
“We lost everything,” said Rodriguez, a 54-year-old Cuban man who has lived in Florida for 20 years. “But at least we’re alive. That’s all we have left.”
Outside their homes, dozens of residents appeared confused and shocked, as if unsure of what to do next.
They were carrying bags with the few belongings they could salvage, and in some cases pet dogs and cats.
It was the second major hurricane in recent weeks, and no one expected it to cause such massive flooding in areas outside of many of the mandatory evacuation zones declared by Florida officials.
The area suffered no damage when Hurricane Helen hit late last month.
The Milton crisscrossed the state before sailing into the Atlantic Ocean, killing at least 11 people. However, Floridians breathed a sigh of relief as the storm surge, catastrophic damage, and loss of life that many feared ultimately did not materialize.
A pump removes water that flooded an apartment complex in Clearwater, Florida, after Hurricane Milton passes on October 10, 2024. Brian R. Smith
When Escalona saw several inches of water on the floor of her home, she at first thought her neighbor had left it on, but she soon realized something was very wrong. I noticed that.
“Everything happened very quickly. The water suddenly came rushing in, the current was strong, there was a lot of current,” Escalona recalled.
“We left with our documents and dog. We spent the night outside our upstairs neighbor’s door,” she said.
Now she and her husband are thinking about what to do and where to go.
“It’s not easy when you think you have everything and suddenly you have nothing,” Rodriguez said.
“I don’t know where to go. I’ve been in this country for almost 20 years and I don’t have any family. It’s just my girlfriend, me and the dog,” he said, pointing to his Chihuahua, Tito.
First responders stand in the water outside an apartment complex that was flooded and a creek flooded by Hurricane Milton in Clearwater, Florida, on October 10, 2024. Brian R. Smith
Although Milton was a powerful Category 3 hurricane, it ultimately did not cause as much damage to Florida as officials had feared.
In fact, most of the storm’s 11 deaths occurred on the East Coast, away from where the storm made landfall, due to tornadoes that spun off from the storm.
In Sarasota, about 60 miles (100 kilometers) south of Clearwater and near the hurricane’s landfall site, streets are slowly returning to normal.
Emergency services cleared much of the road before dawn, but there were still fallen trees in some places, broken glass and other damage.
Dozens of people milled around near Sarasota’s marina, taking photos of the storm damage on cellphones.
They saw a speedboat that had crashed into the boat rental office due to Milton’s high winds.
Many people expressed relief that the damage in the city was not as severe as expected.
“It could have been much worse,” said retiree Donna Pickup.
That sense of relief is shared in Punta Gorda, 100 kilometers (60 miles) southeast of Sarasota.
The town was hit hard by Hurricane Ian in 2022, and several yachts were stranded on the waterfront promenade after a storm surge flooded the area on Wednesday night.
However, even here, the damage was not as severe as many feared.
“Thankfully, a lot of the houses are doing pretty well,” David Cardoso said.
He added: “It should have been a much worse blow.”
