Hurricane Ian was not kind to the Daytona Beach Shores institution Crabby Joe’s.  The back half of the restaurant and pier were hurled into the sea during the storm. While all the employees are now out of a job, many are stepping up to help them through fundraising and lending a helping hand. 

“That is table 55 that is hanging on by a thread right there and that was everyone’s favorite table in the restaurant,” said Danielle Nichols, looking at what is left of Crabby Joe's. Nichols, the lead server at Crabby Joe’s, is still shocked to see what Hurricane Ian did to the restaurant she loved so much.

“My babies took their first steps here, this is our home, our second home,” said Nichols. A second home she won’t be able to return to anytime soon. “The more you look at it the more you are scared it could just be one more bad rainstorm and more of it falls down,” said Nichols. 

She is now one of 150 employees here that are out of a job. A fact made even harder by what the storm did to her home just a few miles away. “It really is like a grieving process losing all of your things,” she said, looking at her soaked furniture piled up on the curb. 

Inside she is still looking for what she can salvage for her two kids b“There is about 10 books in here and I think those are the only books that survived the flood.”

She is still processing what happened. 

“Because it is not just our home that is unlivable right now, it is my job and my sense of security,” said Nichols.  In the playroom, Nichols sees the marks left behind by the rising floodwaters, which got ankle deep before she left with her husband, kids and pets.

While they’ve since started cleaning up and signed a lease on a place to stay it is still a struggle.  "We have to pay our mortgage too and the problem is insurance is slow right now, claims are slow, we did have someone come check our house out but they said two weeks till they even write it up so we are having issues  trying to figure out how to financially pay for everything,"  said Nichols. 

It’s a heavy load to bear,  but one made lighter with the help of her fellow staff members. Not only have they come to help, but managers have managed to raise $31,000 dollars so far to split between all the employees affected by Ian.

“There is a beauty in working in restaurants because it is like misfits all put together and they just become your family and they stick together…. that is what it is,” said Nichols. 

Managers at Crabby Joe’s say when it comes to repairs— it is a waiting game right now. They shared that their  insurance company has already gone out to make an assessment. Once they hear back they will look for estimates from their general contractor. ​

If you'd like to help, this is the fund managers have set up for employees like Nichols. Nichols has her donations page​ as well.