The Aftermath

Wow, so we returned to a LOT of damage to the area. Our neighborhood fared pretty well, but trepidation grew as we got off the interstate.

We started to see a LOT of trees down, and some outright snapped.

When we got to my neighborhood, there were still a lot of trees down, but since our neighborhood is relatively newer, there weren't many large trees to do a lot of damage. There was one large palm that had blocked the road, but it had already been chainsawed up by the time we got home.

We pulled into our driveway, which was covered with moss and little bits of debris, but our roof looked intact, and no trees were down in the front yard. However, once inside, a quick glance out the French doors to the backyard told us our little tree had fallen...

So we were very, very lucky and blessed. We heard the power had went out at around 10:00 pm or 2:00 am Thursday in our neighborhood, depending on what subdivision you lived in, and didn't come on until about 11:00 am on Saturday. So I'm glad we evacuated.

When we took Joe's to a friend's house in town, we discovered many were not as fortunate as we were. The Publix parking lot suffered some major damage.

And as we drove closer to where Joe's friend lives, the damage appeared even more severe...

I was taking some video when we happened upon this poor guy trying to cut the limbs of a massive tree that had fallen in his driveway with a tiny handsaw:

Then we drove to my work, which was close by. There is a home adjacent to our back parking lot, and their fence was destroyed, but I noticed that our power was on--the AC was running, and the outside lights were on. I'm not sure if we sustained any inside flood damage, but I haven't received a call yet, so I assume it's a normal day of work.

Anyway, I can't help but feel a little guilty that we were able to escape the brunt of the storm in comparative luxury at Bahama Bay Resort in Davenport. And Haiti, I can't even imagine. Like many others in our area, we want to help them...

I think James took some pics and video, too...I'll see if he can text them to me so I can add them tomorrow...