Long road to recovery in the aftermath of Hurricane Idalia
Local residents are reflecting on the aftermath of Hurricane Idalia, many saying the storm was worse than past hurricanes. A long road to recovery is underway for residents of Cedar Key, Florida.
Transcript
00:00 As Edalia made landfall Wednesday morning, the Florida Big Bend area took a direct hit,
00:04 bringing destruction in the form of wind and surge.
00:07 Cedar Keys took on that surge with water rising up to 10 feet.
00:11 Many say this was worse than past hurricanes.
00:13 >> Hermine was the last big one that flooded in here in 2016.
00:18 Now, there are parts of the island that absolutely got more surge this time around
00:24 than others that may be about the same.
00:26 In any case, I mean, we're just a small island, and when we have surge that comes in, it's
00:32 meaningful.
00:33 >> Residents returned Thursday for cleanup, not only battling mud and debris, but the
00:37 heat with temperatures in the 90s.
00:40 >> It's hot and the humidity.
00:42 We've had a couple little showers earlier today, so that just brings more humidity to
00:46 the area.
00:47 We also have a supermoon, so our tide's coming up in the streets, you know, and so we've
00:50 got water everywhere, plus the heat is so bad.
00:53 >> For many here, the cleanup will take weeks, but the emotional toll will be longer.
00:58 Reporting for AccuWeather in Cedar Keys, Florida, I'm Trisha Gates.
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