The Sarasota area, where landfall Miltonis far from having recovered from the passage of the hurricane. Electricity is slow to be restored in many areas, few grocery stores are open and the few gas stations that still have gasoline are under attack.
At the Exxon gas station, where around thirty cars line up to enter, Dwayne Ernst fills large cans of gasoline placed in the box of his pickup truck. A few minutes before, he lost patience with the motorist behind him, insulting him with a “ asshole fucking » felt good.
On the radio, Sarasota County communications manager Genevieve Judge says “it’s going to be a long road” and notes that local citizens are experiencing anxiety.
“People are very stressed, very tense,” adds Gaby Woder, who also fills cans of gasoline. “Did you see the people driving?” », asks the young woman.
Dwayne Ernst may have lost his temper with his fellow citizen, but he assures us that hurricanes are “routine”. “We have been experiencing this for several years,” recalls the man, who says that his neighborhood was directly in the eye of the hurricane. His house nevertheless held up.
“All this is for my generators,” he said, pointing to his red cans. “Mainly to store food. And the beer! “, he said.
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
Dwayne Ernest met at a Sarasota County gas station
Gaby Woder drove several miles to find a gas station. “I’m relieved,” she said.
Within the next few days, she expects power to be restored, but until then, she will be able to power her generators.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Friday he spoke with President Joe Biden. “We will do everything we can to help people get back on their feet,” he said.
At Spanish Lake Mobile Home Park in Laurel, Steve Dohanish has “a little work to do” to get his house back to how it was. The storefront did not withstand the hurricane.
The neighbor’s house is intact. The one on the other side of the small lake, no. Faced with the damage that affected the mobile homes in a strange trajectory, Mr. Dohanish puts forward a hypothesis: a tornado passed during the night from Wednesday to Thursday. Dozens of tornadoes were recorded in the wake of Hurricane Milton.
Fortunately for the man, this is not his primary residence. He lives in Michigan, but spends his winters in Florida.
In line to buy gas, Gerry Murphy says it’s not the same for his family, two members of whom “lost everything.”
The roof of his own house, where they are now all crowded together, received a tree branch.
“But we have a great family, we all work together,” adds Mme Murphy.