‘Rick on the roof’ holds strong going into day 2 of protest

Reporter: Asha Patel Writer: Nicholas Karsen
Published: Updated:
Rick Loughery sitting in chair. Credit: WINK

Rick is still on that roof as he heads into his second day of protesting against the new FEMA regulations. A few people have even shown up in support.

The protest began with FEMA’s new regulations following Hurricane Ian, which will force Rick Loughery to tear down his garage to conform to regulations.

Because of Hurricane Ian, Loughery swam from his house floating away to his garage, and latched on. He spent $25,000 fixing up the garage before being told he had to continue adding onto it, bring it up to code, or tear it down.

Loughery refuses to follow FEMA’s regulations, which has led to the protest of sitting atop his garage roof until an agreement to not destroy his garage is met.

Rick holding a volleyball with a hand imprint. Credit: WINK

Loughery briefly settled on an agreement with FEMA as he came down from the garage roof for a short time Thursday, but things are still at an impasse. He’s still up there and while there is concern for his health as temperatures rise, Rick says this is the hill he’s taking a stand on.

Loughery has a lawn chair and an umbrella to help alleviate the summer heat while camping on his roof. He has been eating dinner and spending the night on the roof.

The city of Fort Myers says the garage must be demolished because of FEMA regulations but Loughery was not given a specific reason for why the garage was condemned.

Rick sitting on his chair. Credit: WINK

Rick argues the garage was a separate structure, with separate walls barely even attached to the house. He hired an architect, a permitting agent, designer and engineer and they don’t understand why the garage needs to be destroyed.

A spokesperson with Fort Myers Beach told WINK News that Rick could convert the surviving garage into a stand-alone structure for storage and parking only. A new single-family home can be built with the garage connected to the home. The building must meet floodplain regulations and building codes.

Fort Myers Beach Councilman Bill Veach also had an accessory structure to his home that had to be torn down after Ian because it was not up to code.

Rick has drawn a line in the sand. People on Fort Myers Beach have shown up to support him in his fight with FEMA and town leaders.

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