PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — Hotels along Treasure Island and Sunset Beach were devastated during Hurricane Helene and eight months later, one family-owned hotel is now open again.
After flood waters destroyed much of Sunset Beach, few hotels still stand.
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"We were watching security footage the night of the hurricane, and we were starstruck about what we were going to come back to," said Craig Rothschild, who owns The Roth Hotel on Sunset Beach.
Like many, Rothschild lost his family business when water from Hurricane Helene filled his hotel rooms.
"We lost footage right when it was over the railings of the dock here," he said.
After the storm, Rothschild had to make a difficult decision to replace almost everything.
"When the hurricane came through not even four years after we renovated the hotel, it was really sad…and we didn't know what the future held," said Rothschild.
But for The Roth Hotel, the future is bright.
Rothschild spent eight months putting his hotel back together.
Hotel rooms were transformed from a bare-bones structure into beautiful living spaces.
Rothschild said he made hurricane-resistant adjustments to the hotel.
Even though the project took several months, he said it was worth it.
"When you put your name on the building, you kind of have your heart and soul in it and we rebuilt this back better than it was before," said Rothschild.
Customers agree.
"It looks like the storm never happened," said Alex Landeta.
Landeta and his family are glad that after eight long months, their daughter can once again play in the pool the family has come to love.
"Her second birthday was at the hotel, my parents stayed the year before that,they've been here twice. It's the hotel that we recommend to our friend and family as well," he said.
The hotel is now fully booked just in time for Memorial Day Weekend and Rothschild hopes his hotel reopening is just the start for his community.
"We've learned from this experience, and we were very lucky we were able to fix the property up," said Rothschild.
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