Sanibel couple remaining hopeful following damage from Helene

A Sanibel couple remains hopeful after flooding impacted their home during Helene Thursday night.

Areas throughout Southwest Flordia are still recovering 48 hours later from Helene.

The category 4 storm swept through and caused some damage to several homes and businesses.

Saturday also marks the second anniversary of Hurricane Ian, a day that changed the lives of so many.

One of the areas that is still recovering is Sanibel Island.

Noel Manley and his wife, Kacie Vivo, did not expect to be surveying damage from Helene on Saturday. Their home was already damaged by Ian’s effects two years ago.

There was still flooding in their home left over from Helene on Saturday.

The emotions they’re feeling today are mixed on the second anniversary of Hurricane Ian.

Some of the damage left was mostly water damage where about 15 inches of water flooded their yard, making its way into their house.

A few items were shifted around, along with some leftover debris.

With so many people still recovering from Ian, Noel and Kacie were just in the beginning stages of recovering their home.

With Helene’s impact, they’re having to start over from scratch.

“Right before Helene, we were thinking, let’s get the process going,” said Noel Manley. “Helene probably sets us back maybe a couple of months, but it definitely doesn’t set us back. We’ll go forward. We just need to figure out what the right thing to do in this case, and we’ll work together and figure that out.” It’s a lot of destruction, but a lot of hope.”

Despite all the home repairs that need to be done, they said the one thing that isn’t damaged is their hope.