RUBONIA, Fla. — A Manatee County community affected by Hurricane Idalia is getting some much-needed help.
Code enforcement officers from Manatee County are meeting with affected residents at the Rubonia Community Center to assist. Officers would be hearing about what challenges the residents there are dealing with.
The storm surge from Idalia took over Rubonia last week, and neighbors have brought out some of their belongings to dry out while some have left damaged items by the roadside for collection.
"As far as you could look down the road, everything was just floating like out in the ocean just floating," Viola Bostic, one of the impacted neighbors, said.
Bostic, 85, said her home was inundated by flood waters from the nearby creek during the storm. A family member had helped her get some things off the ground but heavier items like furniture and appliances weren't spared.
"We've got everything out from under here, my pots and pans and things. I had to take all of that out and get everything washed up and now I got everything sitting up on the counter," she explained.
"It's going to happen again, okay, because of the creek and U.S. 41," Mary Goff, a nearby neighbor, said.
It's the same story at about 50 homes owned by seniors in the neighborhood, including Goff's nine-bedroom home down the road, which she had just renovated.
"All of my washing machine, stove, refrigerator, dryer, dishwasher. Everything is gone," she said.
Teams from the Red Cross have been stationed at the community center to help residents file claims with insurance and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. County code enforcement officers joined Thursday evening with an informational meeting aimed at helping to assist, direct and check on the condition of homes.
"We're there to support them so you know this isn't us coming in trying to remove anybody from their homes, this is us coming to provide you with the tools that you need to recover," George McCorkle, Manatee County code enforcement chief, said.
In the meantime, volunteers have been assisting the residents with various cleanup needs. However, community leaders said they needed more help and also asked for donations to help the seniors.
"It's hard for me to see some of the people that I grew up with, some of my family members lose everything. It's going be a long road back," Louis Goff, the Rubonia Community Center president, said.
The meeting is from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Thursday at the Rubonia Community Center in Palmetto.
The center's regular hours are 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Friday and volunteers are always on hand to help answer questions.