Punta Gorda residents frustrated by hurricane debris delays

Many people in parts of southwest Florida feel like they’ve dealt with more than their fair share of storm damage lately.

That’s the case in Punta Gorda, where neighbors can’t put the past behind them because hurricane debris still lines their streets.

As WINK News reporter Zoe Warner showed us, it takes an emotional toll.

Nearly a month after Hurricane Milton, storm debris is still piled high in several neighborhoods in Charlotte County, and residents want to know when it will be picked up and taken away.

Punta Gorda is no stranger to hurricanes, but people like Howard Radin want the debris and trash from the storm to be gone.

There is furniture, drywall, and personal items littering the streets.

Radin said he and his neighbors just want to know when people will stop and go through the debris, which is a constant reminder of the flooding.

“This is our stuff. We have scavengers coming down the street in pickup trucks, more than one, going through the garbage on both sides of the yard, throwing things in the air. It’s not right. It’s it’s not a good psychological situation for us,” said Radin. “This should have been picked up sooner. We should have communicated better. What happens next year?”

The City of Punta Gorda contacted WINK News, saying that the city’s website has created a dashboard to track debris pickup and is planning to send crews to the Punta Gorda Isles sometime this week.