Cleaning up Manasota Key after Helene

What didn’t fit in the dumpster sits in a pile outside Larry Bair’s home. His life on Manasota Key was tossed to the curb.

“It’s overwhelming. You don’t know what to pick up; you don’t know where to start,” said Bair.

The home is cleared out. The water line — clear as day, about four feet up.

“It’s kinda like a fire. There’s nothing left.” said Bair, “You just can’t rinse everything off.”

Bair and his family tried.

“Inside the house, down the street, everywhere mud, and man, it stinks like dead fish,” said Bair. “First smart thing I did was get a hose, pressure washer. Of course, it’s salt water. We ain’t got no water.”

He describes life right now as like running in circles. They’re losing track of the day and time just trying to get things done, but they keep positive and find moments to laugh, too.

“Should have smelled the fridge. It was atrocious, haha,” said Bair.

They also celebrate the little wins, like the fact their boat is still here.

“One last thing I gotta mess with,” said Bair.

Bair’s had the place for seven years. He told WINK News he’s never seen anything like this and doesn’t want to ever again.

“This is four. I’ve been through four hurricanes since we’ve lived here,” said Bair. “I’m getting to the point where I think I’m done with Florida or any coastal area in the country.”

Just down the road, a similar story unfolded on Manasota Key.

The Deto’s watched the water rise outside their home.

“She came and told me, ‘Mike, there’s white caps passed the house now,'” said Mike Deto.

The couple felt helpless, checking in real-time on their ring camera.

“You can’t sleep. You’re up all night wondering if you lost everything you have,” said Deto.

Mike boarded the place up and opened a window from outside to find the blinds wet, with three and a half feet of water sealed inside.

“When I pulled open the door the water came out like niagra falls and everything with it. Shoes, everything,” said Deto.

He says it with a smile, holding it together for his family and his wife, Michelle.

“Our anniversary, every year, the 28th of September, and the last 3 years, there’s been a storm,” said Deto.

His son Mark grew up in this home and enjoyed Florida life.

Now?

“My son’s 22 years old and he’s deathly; he doesn’t want to live nowhere near the water. It’s in his brain. He’s constantly looking at the weather, looking at the next storm,” said Deto.

Water got into everything. Their pictures and all the furniture. The fridge even floated up.

“I don’t want my family to see it. They don’t want to live here anymore anyway,” said Deto.

He’s picking up the pieces by himself, a choice he made to protect them.

The family followed him to follow his dream of living on the water, working in part as a fishing guide.

“I’ve been on the water for 30 years now, and it’s kinda turning into a nightmare, and I’m not going to be able to fish like we love to do anymore,” said Deto. “So I have to put them first. They put me first. They let me do what I wanted to do.”

The Detos may raise the home, or after 21 years, it may be time to leave the water in this way.