PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — Hurricane Milton turned many people’s lives upside down, and it will be awhile before they can get back on their feet. 

And some along the Gulf Coast were already struggling after Hurricane Helene impacted them two weeks ago. For residents of Treasure Island in Pinellas County, more heavy wind and rain from Hurricane Milton was the last thing they needed.

What You Need To Know

  • Hurricane Milton turned many people’s lives upside down, and it will be a while before they can get back on their feet

  • After Helene hit Treasure Island, large mounds of debris and water-logged belongings from people's flooded homes were stacked at just about every corner in town

  • While Milton did not bring the catastrophic storm surge as feared, it did bring a lot of rain, which caused some flooding in areas that were already torn up from Helene

Rolando Bermudez works at a salon in Treasure Island that’s been shut down since it was flooded with 4 feet of water during Hurricane Helene. 

He also lives in an apartment on the second floor of the same building as the salon. He does not want Hurricane Milton’s rain to do any more damage than what’s already been done, so he spent time the day after the storm working to clear storm drains clogged by debris left around from Helene.

“There’s so many things happening right now in the city that there’s not enough people; you have to help as much as you can,” said Bermudez.

He came to the beachside town several years ago to build a life there.

“As a Cuban I’m used to dealing with hurricanes, but this was really bad,” said Bermudez.

But what he’s built up in supplies for his salon work for six years was taken away by Helene. And Milton threatened to bring a storm surge that may have taken away even more from him.

“One of my massage guns, it’s useless, done,” said Bermudez. “All my tools, all my equipment, all my clippers.”

Jacqueline’s Salon and Day Spa’s owner, Kalina Shtarkelova, was worried Milton’s storm surge could have been worse than Helene’s.

“The first floor is already damaged, but the second floor is our home, so losing that would be a lot more,” said Shtarkelova. “Now we just have to pick up the pieces and keep going.”

The area was spared from extensive storm surge, but several inches of rain inundated the area once again with water, leaving some flooding in areas where debris is already stacked high in many spots from Helene.

“I worked for this for 15 years and it was taken away from me in a matter of hours,” said Shtarkelova. 

And it’s a lot for a community she’s grown to love.

“To watch it get destroyed twice in two weeks, it’s a lot,” said Shtarkelova. 

And it’s unclear how that community will bounce back.

“A lot of our customers lost everything, a lot of our guests I’ve known for so many years,” said Shtarkelova. 

Bermudez says he’s not sure the place where he’s built his life is where the rest of his life will be.

“This was like paradise for me,” said Bermudez. “Since this, now I don’t know if I want to stay here forever. I don’t know what’s going to happen after this.”