Shore Acres neighborhood accounts for 82% of St. Pete's flood damages from Hurricane Idalia
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - A damage assessment of St. Petersburg found more than 1,400 homes were damaged during Hurricane Idalia.
St. Pete officials say 1,466 homes around the city suffered damage and that 1,206 of those homes were in Shore Acres. According to the damage assessment, the damage in Shore Acres accounts for 82% of the flood damage throughout the entire city.
City officials say 46% of the homes in Shore Acres had some degree of damage, assessing homes by categories ranging from affected, to minor, major or destroyed. For some Shoe Acres residents, this isn’t the first time they’ve dealt with flooding.
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"It's surreal that we're doing this again," Meghan Martin said.
Martin and her husband have lived in Shores Acres with their four children for years.
"I feel like we just got the house put back together, and now we're having to go through this whole process again," she said.
Martin says this is the second time their home has flooded in the last three years.
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"Wednesday morning, I woke up, and we were watching the level of the water just climb on the house," Martin said. "And then at some point we realized that it's in the house."
After evacuating her family ahead of Hurricane Idalia, Martin says they watched their security cameras helplessly, as their home filled with water once again.
"The only thing I could think of is, ‘I just don't want to do this again. And we are something is going to change. We are not going to do this again after this,’" she said.
Martin says she and her husband are forced to make some tough decisions about what to do next.
"We figure that we have three options," Martin said. "We could move. We can raise the house, or we can tear it down and build another one."
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The Martins have already emptied their home of nearly all their belongings and begun tearing out the dry wall. She says a lot of the furniture they replaced the last time their home flooded, was damaged during Hurricane Idalia.
"Looking at all of that, all the stuff piled up on the side, it's just knowing that our neighbors are going through the same kind of devastation," Martin said. "We are looking at their floors coming out in the drywall, in their beds and their possessions. It's tough to look at."
Martin says they’re taking the cleanup and recovery day by day, but they’re grateful for the support of their neighborhood. Martin says they started a GoFundMe to help with the damage, and have started sharing the money with families around the Shore Acres neighborhood who are also rebuilding their homes.
"Really looking forward is daunting," she said. "And so we're really just focused on the short term, you know, how are we looking for today and tomorrow? And then we're going to look at the bigger stuff once we get things settled."
St. Pete officials say 583 homes were affected, suffering flood damage to the garage, screen rooms, other non-habitable areas that is typically below 12" inches of flood depth.
Eight hundred and eight homes suffered minor damage, with flood damage to the habitable area of the home with a flood depth below 18 inches that impact finishes, cabinets, and appliances.
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Seventy-eight homes suffered major damage, with flood damage to the habitable area of the home with a flood depth exceeding 18" that impact electric, plumbing, HVAC, finishes, cabinets, appliances, equipment. Building may not be safe to occupy.
Two homes were deemed destroyed and both sustained damage from fires. Other areas with home that were affected include Riviera Bay, Coquina Key and Snell Isle.