Oh wow you all, I am praying to all the gods for you!!! I was in Akumal all week and just flew over/around that thing on my way back to Baltimore. Please be safe and I hope you have dry houses to come home to!!🙏❤️

Fingers crossed for you and all those in the storm's path. You are wise to head to higher ground.

And please let us know that you are safe!!

I’m in western nc. Went through Helene. 6 days without power or running water. By the grace of god no trees fell on our house. Some of my neighbors were not so lucky. We are on a mountain so flooding was not an issue but the wind and amount of trees that came down was insane. Stay safe. Praying for FL.

I was wondering how our Floridians on Houzz are doing. I am very glad to hear that you are getting the heck out of dodge and am sending best thoughts for your safety.

I have friends and clients here. Headed back to Sarasota. I think another delay may be in the offing, already delayed from Saturday to coming Monday, that seems way iffy. Another in Naples, and another on Sanibel...and another in Fort Myers.

Hard to believe you can get walloped twice in thirteen days. You have the best governor in the USA , but even Ron can't hold back water or Mother Nature.

Get out of harms way. When someone says "write your name on your body so we can identify you" I'd be in FLEE mode.

Godspeed to all in the path.!

And all of us in coastal Texas are thinking... it could have just as easy been us. We know the feelings and pain. Our thoughts and prayers are with all in harm's way.

I really feel for you all! I lived in Miami for years, and I have a daughter at college there, and we watch these storms closely. Hoping Milton is not as bad as they are saying it is!!!

Take care all! I hope you and your families are safe. Most stuff can be replaced. People can't .

Sending positive thoughts from up north!

Thinking of you!!!

Sister in Apoka and dear friends in Titusville.

Prayers for all safety!

To anyone affected, please update when you can!

”You have the best governor in the USA…”

Agree!

From the internet but it rings true…

Has anyone seen Beverly post recently? I hope she'll update this thread.

Milton is the worse!!

@BeverlyFLADeziner - I’m glad you’re okay. I can understand the wish to leave Florida, for all the reasons you identified. Even when you escape the worst of a hurricane, the whole thing sounds exhausting.

I suspect the state will have to insure houses in the near future. The insurance industry can’t sustain the cost of the losses.

@Beverly, I hear you! I’d like to leave but my DH’s kids and grands are here so trying to get us further north. Happy to hear you are ok. It’s tough if you are a full time resident.

" I am leaving Florida after 18 years. "

That sounds like the right thing for you to do. I've never understood why or how people find moving there (or living there) a compelling proposition, for the reasons you mention and many more.

Glad to hear you are okay. I wouldn't stay there (or move there) either.

So good to hear you’re okay! I also understand your wish to leave. Any idea where you’ll go?

Glad you are OK Bev and hope you find a wonderful new home in a safer spot.

We lived in a major northeast city that had snow/ice storms that left us without electricity for a week at a time. It was cold/icy/snowy 5 months of the year.

We lived in CA in a city affected by earthquakes, wildfires and mudslides. The weather was nice the rest of the time!

We now live in FL with hurricanes.

At least with hurricanes we have plenty of time to prepare for them compared to the wildfires and earthquakes.

We built a house here and we have no plans to move. We get to golf, bike and kayak year round. We had minor damage from Milton, although we were right in its path, and would have rebuilt if it had been worse.

You take the good with the bad. 99.4% of the time it is good (I divided days we have lived here by number of days we evacuated).

There are no perfect places and there are no guarantees.

I’m originally from the Chicago suburbs and I get snow and -80 windchill. I’ve been in Florida for 34 years, slightly more than half my life. The stress takes a toll but it is nice 7 months of the year. I can’t go back to the cold but a little moderation would be nice. Higher elevation and a little further from the coast might be my next step. I lived on a sailboat here for 15 years, too, and sailed through the Caribbean being chased by hurricanes. If I can do all that why can’t I pick a paint color! LOL!

Thanks for the update and I’m glad you’re overall well

Glad to hear you are ok! I have had several friends say that they are reconsidering their retirement in Florida. they have been in the path of several hurricanes and have lost everything a couple of times. My heart goes out to everyone living through the wrath of Mother Nature!

Good luck. I hope moving to Chicago works out for you.

Glad you are okay.

I hear you, Bev, about things changing up north. I'm in NY, on Long Island, and when I hear folks say they don't want to live here because they don't want to shovel snow, I have to laugh. We haven't had much snow to speak of in the past few years. I kinda miss it.

@Diana Bier Interiors, LLC Please don't jinx it Diana we have been lucky so far...Let's keep it this way lol

Wishing you the best on your move @BeverlyFLADeziner 💛💛

This was on X .......just yesterday. Three weeks post Helene.

I clipped it to my fridge, for all the days I want to whine about anything. A friend of mine moved out of Asheville ( following 8 retired years there ) two years ago to be near kids in Cleveland, "leaving Gods country"......

Wishing all the Helene and Milton affected the very best . Afflicted, affected..... but still HERE.

Side note: Asheville was the retirement choice because of its "sweet spot, neither harshly hot/humid like Florida, nor the brutal winter of the northeast cold/dreary/blizzards! " .................oops.

For those who are moving, actually everyone, check to see if your property is in a flood zone. And I am not victim blaming, my heart goes out to everyone affected by the past 2 hurricanes. But the information is available, and take it seriously. Even a tiny little stream a few inches deep can turn into a raging torrent under the right conditions.

WOW I think your move Beverly is a good choice . We are older too and we live n an awsome place but good medical is an hour+ trip for any emergency and we 're selling to get to a place closer to medical and our great grandson who I need to hug more often. Good luck on the move and so happy you are okay.

There is no genuine "safe" place to live. Nature being what it is, any beautiful spot can turn into a nightmare very quickly. We've had our share of storms up here on Long Island, the hurricane in 1938 literally broke through the barrier island and created the Shinnecock Canal Inlet. I remember Hurricane Donna in 1960, and then Hurricane Gloria in 1985 when my son was a few months old. We spent hours in the basement. The most recent one was Super Storm Sandy in 2012. Our house narrowly missed being destroyed by a huge oak tree that fell right between our house and our neighbor's house. And we're maybe 20 feet apart. Of course, the power was out for days.

My daughter lives in Southern California, and has had to deal with fires, which to me are way scarier. I couldn't deal with that. And then there are the earthquakes, which come along with no forewarning. I was in California for the 1970 quake--woke up to a giant rumble with everything flying out of the kitchen cabinets. My 80-year old landlord took it all in stride. I guess you get used to anything after living in a place for your whole life.

But Jan's post about the folks in North Carolina is absolutely chilling. I pray for the repose of all their souls, and wish the injured and homeless made whole.

" Chilling"...............it is indeed that. Incomprehensible comes to mind as well.

Moving to be close to family as we age is always a good plan.

All my family is in FL now, so that is another positive for us to stay here.

My parents have friends that retired to Asheville 20 years ago. They are ok and had no damage to their home, but their town won't be the same for a while.

Jan's post made me cry. There is hardly any mention of Asheville in the news and Florida is fading quickly from the news . It is crushing to hear the real stories about what is happening. How does one recover from such loss, let alone have to rebuild?

Moving near family is such a great idea. And being near top notch medical services is great as well. It is one of the reasons I will stay in NY .

Best of luck in your move!

There is some good news, even in Florida. Every single hurricane brings some tragically unfortunate losses, ( but..... and I'll call creative destruction) . ......building codes get ever more sophisticated, better able to withstand the weather. Much of the earliest construction is rebuilt to higher standards than were ever imagined in the fifties, when AIR conditioning made the state comfortably habitable.

The love of water views, any kind.... lures man. Rivers over flow, oceans advance. The gorgeous sand dunes of Provincetown Ma....? They got there with no dump truck involved. Folks rebuild on the Mississippi, knowing it has a risk. .......and as Diana B noted, there is no perfect, no getaway from Mother Nature, be it her beauty.......or wrath.

Maybe these storms are a lot like childbirth. Horrible in the moment, relatively forgotten with some time..................until it happens yet again.

As someone who has lived in the northwest suburbs of Chicago, my entire life, I don’t think that I have ever seen -80 wind chills. And because of climate change our winters are getting milder. Beverly, your comment about health care applies in the retirement areas of Arizona too. Arizona has for-profit health care, with old people just part of the business of making money.

-82 12/24/83

Police stations here on Cape Cod (and probably all over the country) are accepting donations to help those who lost so much with Helene and Milton. NC is heading into winter...one more thing to make matters worse.

Prayers for all.

We moved away from the cold of NY to Nashville eleven years ago. When I have to go to our “safe space” because of tornadoes coming down our street, I am truly terrified. We lived through Sandy when it hit NY but my Boy Scout husband had a generator going all day(and yes, extra gas which we always need for the tractor). We made it through that without any serious damage (trees falling, etc)

Scary weather is the norm. And my husband reminded me that Asheville was on our “possible cities” list too. Eastern TN got hit this time and people are reeling from the damage.

"" I am leaving Florida after 18 years. "

That sounds like the right thing for you to do. I've never understood why or how people find moving there (or living there) a compelling proposition, for the reasons you mention and many more."

It will continue to be freezing in the north this winter and we'll be drinking in bars outside in maybe a sweater and long pants after we rebuild which is what we do. Fortunately for the Florida real estate market there is still a huge demographic of potential retirees up north and virtually all have an incredibly short memory.

Before:

Couple taps with a sledge:

The Germans created garage doors that protect against flooding, Currently only sold in Europe. Don’t know if they would be hurricane proof, but interesting idea. I’m investigating flood proofing options.

ker9, did you see the dam-like wall structure that Tampa General Hospital sets up around the building? 60 people working 3 days to set it up. Might be overkill for one house!

Joe, everyone does what's best for them. Let's not judge people for their choice of where to live.

Chispa, definitely overkill and $$$$$$ for my house! Have found a few smaller residential possibilities.

This post has run its course. It's; done.

I hate posts that come back like bad pennies again and again taking up valuable space.

I have attempted to delete it 10 times and no matter what I do HOUZZ brings it back. So sorry.

Homes have a significant place in people’s hearts, and when homes get damaged, we all feel it. We had a vacation home in NC OBX and every time a storm came up the coast I was absolutely sick to my stomach. We sold it in 2021 and even though I will miss all the happy times, I was relieved. So I sort of understand the emotions.

Beverly if a couple of us flag your first OP as spam, I think we can disappear this thread I will flag right now; will some others also flag and see if we can make Beverly’s wish come true?