HUDSON, Fla. — Kate Mullin and her neighbors on Sanderling Lane in Hudson say they feel like they live on a forgotten street.
What You Need To Know
- During Idalia, everyone on Kate Mullin’s street saw water from nearby creeks come pouring into their houses
- Some feel overlooked, particularly by Pasco County
- In response to an inquiry from Spectrum Bay News 9, Pasco County officials listed a dozen different things county leaders had done to help residents after Idalia
In late August, Hurricane Idalia battered the Big Bend area of Florida, making landfall in Keaton Beach as a Category 3 storm. For many in Tampa Bay, the story of Idalia was a “near-miss” storm that presented a day’s worth of hassles that quickly dissipated.
In short: Tampa Bay dodged the proverbial bullet.
But Mullin says, “We did not dodge. We took it.”
Mullin and her neighbors live near the coast in Pasco County. Their backyards include boat docks, nestled on creeks that lead out to the Gulf of Mexico. During Idalia, everyone on Mullin’s street saw water from those creeks come pouring into their houses.
“There was just this perfect storm of water being pushed in from the hurricane and everyone got hit pretty bad,” Mullin said.
Mullin’s house provides a good example of the damage. It’s gutted. Crews have ripped out the drywall 4 feet up, needing to replace the portions of the house that flooded. All that’s left is the framing.
Photo by Kristina McAlvanah
“It looks like a skeleton,” Mullin said. “It’s heartbreaking.”
It’s a similar situation next door at Kristina McAlavanah’s house.
“It feels like I’m building a brand, new house. It’s been really rough,” McAlvanah said.
McAlvanah and her fiancé moved everything they could salvage from flooding to the middle of each room. But they threw away so much, tossing furniture, clothes and pictures. It was the photos that tore McAlvanah apart, knowing they couldn’t be replaced.
“You don’t think they’re important because they sit in a box. But then you don’t have them and it’s a whole different deal,” McAlvanah said.
It’ll be weeks — maybe months — before most of these houses are livable again. Both Mullin and McAlvanah admitted to feeling overwhelmed by the damage, but also feeling overlooked — specifically by Pasco County. They felt county leaders could have done more to help them.
Photo by Kristina McAlvanah
In response to an inquiry from Spectrum Bay News 9, Pasco County officials listed a dozen different things county leaders had done to help residents after Idalia.
They included picking up debris, providing “flood buckets” (buckets of cleaning supplies) and waiving tipping fees for those that brought debris to solid waste facilities.
They added that most of their work was focused on Hudson, as it was the county’s largest-impacted area. They’re planning to enhance the Disaster Resource Center at the Fasano Regional Hurricane Shelter.
