Port Charlotte community anxious about storm surge ahead of Idalia

Eleven months after Hurricane Ian hit Southwest Florida, Charlotte County residents must prepare for Hurricane Idalia while still picking up the pieces left behind by Ian. No evacuations will be ordered unless the projected storm surge is “life-threatening,” and as of 4 p.m., the surge forecast is two to four feet.

Importantly, people living in trailers or other temporary housing and don’t feel like they can ride out the storm, can go to Centennial Park in Port Charlotte, starting Tuesday, at 8 a.m.

Eleven months ago, Ian hit a Charlotte County 55-and-older community called Port Charlotte Village, and there is still a lot of work left to do. With Idalia likely tracking to become a hurricane, Michael Emerine and his neighbors are feeling the stress.

“I’m very much concerned about everyone in here because, you know, these contractors are doing shoddy work and you wonder whether they fix your home right or not,” said Emerine.

Emerine’s roof flew off when Hurricane Ian, a category 5 hurricane, bashed Southwest Florida. His roof was supposed to be fixed by this time, but he describes it as bent and dipping in all the wrong places.

“My concern right now is will my home withstand the storm,” Emerine asked.

Meanwhile, Laurel and Jeff Jacobson moved to Punta Gorda a few months before Hurricane Ian.

“I think the big takeaway for me was to never make any assumptions based on what the projected location of the hurricane is going to be,” said Jeff.

Since they aren’t making any assumptions, Laurel and Jeff are getting prepared by picking up sandbags. Despite this, it hardly helps them feel secure.

“Driving around, you just see lots of roofs still going up. We’re still awaiting our roof. We’re on the list, waiting for the tiles to show up, so that’s for us a concern,” said Laurel.

Fear and anxiety over storm surge can happen if you’re living on the water with a hurricane coming a bit too close for comfort, which is exactly what David Shutz is feeling Monday afternoon.

“I have to admit, we’re suffering from a little bit of post-traumatic stress. Ordinarily, a storm like this wouldn’t get us going, but because of the experience that we had a year ago, and the fact that my house is not fully rebuilt yet,” Shutz said. “There’s a little bit more anxiety, and we’re closing up a little sooner and we’re looking at it a little more closely.”