SW Florida, Sanibel, Ft Myers Update

Sep 30, 2022, 8:27 AM

An update from my post yesterday afternoon. First off - I don't live there. I used to, but still have family down there, including my 92yo mother who rode the storm out at a friend's house. Her house is on the Caloosahatchee River, 6ft above sea level. We finally got to it yesterday and thankfully and surprisingly it was 100% intact and had only seen about 6" of water (and muck and mud) inside. Others on the river saw up to 5ft of water in their homes, so we feel very fortunate. I know a house is a house and things can be replaced, but this was the house she lived in with my dad, Clemson grad '58, who passed in '05 and this is kind of all she has left of that time with him, so to have lost the house would have been crushing to her.

Elsewhere, for those familiar with Sanibel, Ft Myers Beach, Cape Coral (some of this is a recap from yesterday):
* Sanibel Island - the causeway bridge collapsed in two places and the causeway itself was washed away in two other places, so there is zero access to the island except by boat or air. The Sanibel lighthouse withstood the storm, but the outbuilding with it was destroyed. Only about 200 people stayed on the island, so that's good that most evacuated. But there are many businesses and rentals on Sanibel, so a lot of people will be without income for a long time while all this gets repaired.
* Ft Myers Beach - Devastated. If it wasn't destroyed, it was gutted by storm surge of up to 10ft. The Ft Myers Beach pier - literally gone. All that's left are the pilings it was on. Times Square near the pier - 100% gone. Leveled. Most one-story structures ON the beach - gone. Inland from the beach - flooded, damaged, and some relocated or tipped over. Functionally, there's nothing left of Ft Myers Beach. A huge human impact, whether you lived there or worked there.
* Cape Coral - fared ok, relative to Ft Myers Beach, but still lots of destruction. The Cape Coral Beach pier is gone. Many homes in the Cape are on canals so many were flooded. Some houses were actually damaged by boats that floated off of their moorings. Lots of water and damage there.
* Ft Myers proper - water damage near the river, the marina is trashed (pretty much ALL the marinas were trashed and many boats destroyed or relocated onto now-dry land). Many homes suffered exterior damage, but new construction codes definitely helped.

Very few people have power and I don't think anyone has drinkable water anywhere in Lee County. For context, evening lows are still around 70 and highs are low 80s, so even though it's almost October, it's still not a good time there to be w/o power, and to have water damage in your home just sitting there festering.

One thing to keep in mind - this area is a tourist town, and they're closing in on tourist/snowbird season, which will be heavily impacted and reduced this year. The economy will take a HUGE hit and people will struggle financially in a major way. Keep the people of SW Florida in your prayers for the next several weeks and even months.

Lots of pics and some video in the link below:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11264899/Officials-Fort-Myers-implement-6pm-curfew-LOOTERS-targeting-local-businesses.html

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SW Florida, Sanibel, Ft Myers Update

Thank you for the update

Re: SW Florida, Sanibel, Ft Myers Update

I grew up in Ft. Myers (Riverdale HS)…why didn’t people…

I think a lot of them were owned by snowbirds

Re: SW Florida, Sanibel, Ft Myers Update

Re: SW Florida, Sanibel, Ft Myers Update

Re: SW Florida, Sanibel, Ft Myers Update

Re: SW Florida, Sanibel, Ft Myers Update

Re: SW Florida, Sanibel, Ft Myers Update

Any idea about access to Pine Island?

Re: Any idea about access to Pine Island?

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