SARASOTA, Fla. (WFLA) — It’s been a year since Hurricane Milton threatened Florida’s Gulf Coast, yet the urgency of that time remains vivid for Michelle Wooster.
Wooster, her husband and 4-year-old daughter, Ruby — then 3 years old — left their Sarasota home one day before the storm hit on Oct. 9.
Even now, signs of that day linger on their property. Tarps are still draped over parts of the roof, towels cover the garage floor, and plywood blocks rain that manages to seep in.
“We’ve had to replace that over and over,” Wooster said. “A decent tarp is at least $80. And like I said, this is like the sixth one.”
When she first returned home after the storm, the scale of destruction left her in tears.
“I just broke down in tears because every light was out. Street signs were knocked down. I saw nine carports, all in a row, blown over to the neighbors across the street,” she recalled. “There were tree limbs piercing through garages. It was overwhelming. I’ve lived here all my life, faced many hurricanes, but this was my first as a homeowner.”
Milton’s wind tore through their neighborhood, lifting the family’s carport and hurling it across the street.
“I felt instantly guilty because our house had caused damage to someone else’s home,” Wooster said. “Nine carports ended up with the neighbors across the street.”
The family also lost equipment from their small beekeeping business, including their honey extractor and the vacuum they use for bee rescues.
“We were out-of-pocket around $10,000,” Wooster noted. “We lost our water heater, our washer, and our dryer, even our Christmas decorations.”
But amid the losses, Wooster said she’s grateful for what remains.
“We’re safe. Our house is safe. We have our health. We were OK,” she said. “We lost things. And things are replaceable. And it’s OK. We can rebuild.”
Currently, the family is concentrating on rebuilding and planning to celebrate Ruby’s birthday, a celebration delayed last year. She will finally have her much-anticipated party.
“Ruby’s birthday is in October. We had to postpone her birthday last year. It’s the 28th, so we had a bounce house planned and we had to postpone that,” Wooster said. “So, we’re looking forward to double celebrations this year for sure.”
