Madeira Beach, Fla. (WFLA) — We’re less than a month away from the start of hurricane season, but for many in Pinellas County, they’re still working to recover from the impact of last season.
Almost seven months after Hurricane Helene, some residents of the Madeira Beach Yacht Club still lack permanent homes and are running out of time and waiting for permission.
Hurricane season begins on June 1st. Currently, some of the condominiums are still impossible, many of them are homes for seniors who are not yet authorized.
Connie Noren, 87, has called the Madeira Beach Yacht Club home for over 30 years, but last year’s hurricane season changed everything.
“Thirty-five years later, I thought Waters had never crossed the embankment before, so I was alone now and I thought it was okay because my husband had passed away,” Noren said. “Then I saw, and I thought, yeah, that water would come to the sea wall.”
When the storm surge entered, she and her son found themselves trapped inside, but with the help of her neighbor, she was able to escape.
“He came in through the window behind my unit and by then the water had come over me,” Noren said. “That was a bit scary. I could swim, but I didn’t know how I was about to get out of there.”
She says the storm swallowed more than her furniture, which wiped out lifelong memories.
“I lost everything. Everything, I lost all memories, all photos, all souvenirs. I traveled a lot on being a military wife, and I gathered a lot of things.
She temporarily lives upstairs thanks to her neighbors, but she will have to go outside by June as the hurricane season rises again.
For now, Connie is navigating the reality of red tape, repairs and redoing with 87.
