Saturday marked two years since Hurricane Ian.
The city of Sanibel planned on celebrating two years of growth since the devastating storm during the "Love Sanibel Community Gathering Event," but the event shifted to Hurricane Helene cleanup and recovery.
The city of Sanibel and the community had been working toward recovery up until this point.
"People are getting back into their homes, businesses are reopening, we're getting through this, and then this week pops up ... Helene," Sanibel Mayor Richard Johnson said.
Johnson said Helene brought flooding, storm surges, problems with its wastewater system and power outages
"It's all being attended to by our Public Works Department, and everyone is safe to run the water," he said. "It's safe to take a shower or flush or whatever you need to do. All in all, I think we have about 300 people we're working on with power."
Maria Espinosa, executive director of FISH , Sanibel-Captiva's social service organization, said the food pantry is open and they are providing any assistance people may need.
"About two years ago, where we're doing the same things we're doing today, which is getting to folks who are on ground-level homes or have been impacted in storm in any way, getting their belongings out, and trying to salvage what we can right now," she said. "There's people coming in and getting flood buckets, ice for those that still don't have electricity in their home, and then also providing nonperishables for folks. Then, in the week that comes, we'll be assessing additional needs."
Nicole Mchale, executive director of community housing resources, said they are helping those in affordable housing units.
"We're drying all of the storage units out, and we're going to get dumpsters for the properties so everybody can throw all of their debris in there," she said.
Volunteers said they are helping residents recover their homes by sweeping out water and putting fans inside to try and prevent mold from growing.
Everyone is working on pushing forward and staying "Sanibel Strong."