DAVIS ISERS, Fla. (WFLA) – Hurricane season is here again, with some on the other side of Tampa Bay still recovering from last season’s storm.
For one couple in the Davis Islands, memories of floods, losses and interactions are still fresh.
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John and Julie Filingim moved to the Davis Islands in 2021. I didn’t think the hurricanes were overflowing with their streets, let alone their living rooms. But when the hurricane season hit, they learned how quickly conditions change.
“Helen got us,” John said. “You know, we were visiting that day with people who lived on the island for years. They said, ‘Oh, don’t worry about it. There’s never a flood. The Davis Islands are not a flood. It was 100 years.”
The couple knew they had to stay until the water was raw to the front door and leave.
“We stayed until about 9:30 when the water arrived in front of the house and left in the truck,” he said. “So I could probably run through three feet of water.”
When they returned they couldn’t even drive to the Davis Islands. The damage has already been done. The flood moved the entire house.
“We got here and the lights were on outside,” Julie said. “So we might not be that bad, and we opened this door.”
Inside, the waterline was evidence of what they had lost. The couple grabbed the broom and began pushing water out of the house.
“It was devastating. We opened all the doors and got a broom and started pushing it out.”
They were not alone.
“Everyone had everything we had on the curb, including us,” recalls Julie. “And it was a total devastation.”
The effects of the storm were more than physical.
“I have never feared a hurricane in my life,” John said.
Through it, Julie said she was holding on to the things that were really important, wearing a tank top that said “Never give up.”
“I’ll never give up,” she said. “We’ve gone through a lot. No matter what happens, we’re never going to give up.”
Now, Filingim said he would urge his new neighbors to evacuate early and take hurricane season seriously.
