With Hurricanes Helene and Milton in the rearview mirror, Hernando County is working to get back to life as usual. Unfortunately for many, the devastation is still too real. Earlier this month, the county’s board of commissioners held multiple special town hall meetings in East and West Hernando to provide information directly to affected residents.
Members from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD) were present as issues such as damage assessments, building repairs, and floodplain compliance were touched on among others. The messaging and information from the government representatives was similar at each gathering with certain aspects of the presentations tailored to the areas’ specific concerns.
For instance, at the November 20 town hall at Eastside Elementary School, there were questions about the pickup of yard debris. Despite concerns over the deadline for the county to receive FEMA compensation, County Administrator Jeff Rogers noted that the clutter will continue to be cleaned up “no matter how long it takes” at the county’s expense.
How long will this take? For the west end of the county in the Hernando Beach area, it took roughly four weeks for garbage crews to collect everything. The commissioners added that if citizens split up the garbage into piles of branches, appliances, construction debris, and hazardous waste, the process will be able to be expedited.
SWFWMD’s Mark Fulkerson then spoke about the water levels on the eastern end of Hernando: “If we look at conditions just prior to Hurricane Milton […] much of the county were [in the 75th and 90th percentile] […] what we call above normal rainfall the last 12 months […] That’s where we were prior to Hurricane Milton,” Fulkerson stated. “That’s why Milton was the storm that it was.”
With the Withlacoochee River snaking its way through the Trilby and Ridge Manor areas, among others, citizens in these portions of the county know all too well about the flooding that has ensued since the storms left. In these areas specifically, the river has risen 11 and 9 feet, respectively, added Fulkerson.
The area received the highest watermark it has experienced since 1934. While the waters crested roughly a month ago, they are still yet to recede completely in communities like West Lake.
A topic discussed at length at both the Eastside and Weeki Wachee-based gatherings was the “50-Percent Rule.” Much of the run times of these meetings consisted of the county explaining and citizens asking questions about the details of this FEMA requirement.
The 50-Percent Rule is a regulation under the NFIP (National Flood Insurance Program) that dictates that “a structure in a flood zone damaged more than 50-percent of market value” will need more substantive improvements to bring the home into compliance with substantial damage requirements under the NFIP, Hernando County Senior Planner Omar DePablo noted.
Structures that meet this threshold that are in “legal non-conformance” will need to reach elevation and other flood-proofing requirements. This includes elevating a home to at least one foot above base flood elevation. More comprehensive renovations may be necessary in more extreme scenarios.
The value of any specific domicile is calculated by the county property appraiser. Anyone who is unhappy with the assessed value of their home can enlist the help of a professional third party. One way to do that post-storm is with detailed documentation. For instance, photographs of your home before the hurricanes could be used to determine its worth.
After each presentation, citizens had the opportunity to come up one by one and address their concerns to the board. Tensions were high and residents of the eastern Hernando communities were understandably angry and confused. In addition to clarifications on the 50-Percent Rule and refuse disposal, citizens volleyed questions about insurance, water safety, and what will be done differently the next time this situation presents itself.
“I’m a single mom on disability, and most like everybody in the neighborhood, does not have the finances to start the demolition of fixing their homes, even feeding their kids or getting them presents again […] What am I supposed to do?” asked Kelly from Ridge Manor. “I can’t even afford my medication right now because I got to worry about everything else […] and I know a lot of these people are probably in the same boat.”
For more detailed breakdowns of the processes and citizen’s comments at the town halls, every meeting can be viewed in its entirety on Hernando County’s website.
