A Charlotte County couple has to rebuild their life from scratch after Hurricane Helene destroyed all their belongings. Floodwaters from the Peace River rushed into Hannah Jacobson and Mark Barbee's home along Bayshore Road.
For the two years they'd lived there prior to the storm, the river never extended into their lanai. The couple said they never expected things to surge as much as they did. They say one sight made their stomachs sink.
"We were watching the water come over the shoreline there, and the boat came up on shore. So, we knew it was going to be pretty bad," Barbee recalled.
Barbee tried to climb out the window to reach the breaker box but couldn't reach it.
"When he was outside doing that, that's when the garage door broke. This door inside had busted open. Water came really flushing through. Meanwhile, it was coming in, like, over the windowsills. It just happened really fast," Jacobson explained.
Shortly after, the water started to shock them.
"For me, it was just a dire situation at that point," Barbee said. "Water coming in through the windows, coming in through the rush of the door there. Options were limited at that point, and once we started getting shocked, I knew not just for us but for the animals as well. It's we now need to make very quick decisions and find a way out of here."
"It was electrocuting us," Jacobson added. "Definitely more dense in some spots of the house."
Fortunately, a social media post garnered attention quickly. Two men from Englewood brought a boat and helped the couple, and their pets, get to safety.
"The community here is literally just so amazing. So many people, like, I was overwhelmed. Everyone was trying their best to help us," Jacobson said.
For now, the couple and their pets are staying with family in Arcadia. They're cars were totaled so they're borrowing vehicles for now and receiving donations to help sustain them.
"Right now, we're just trying to figure out transportation, you know, just kind of basic necessities," Barbee said.
As for the house, the couple said their landlord is hoping to start on repairs and construction this week.
"It's troubling to feel comfortable when you can just so easily be displaced and taken away from that comfort. You put a lot of hard work into making it a home and making it a comfortable place, and to have it kind of ripped open like that is a horrible feeling," Barbee said.
There is a GoFundMe in place to support Jacobson and Barbee titled "Support Hannah's Family After Devastating Flood".