TAMPA, Fla. — Months after back-to-back hurricanes ravaged the Tampa Bay area, some families are still reeling in the wake of the damage done.
“Helene we stayed in place, and then we had water come in the house,” said Kirby Wilson.
Wilson lives in South Tampa and said last year was a year of firsts.
WATCH: Neighbors share thought process behind evacuating, sheltering in place
“It was just a little, but still, we’ve been in our house 37 years, and that was the first time we’d ever had water get in, so kind of a wake-up call,” he said.
As neighbors stay vigilant this hurricane season, they also shared what goes into their decision to shelter in place or leave, even if they experience some storm fatigue.
“You kind of get some complacency, and you’re just kind of like again? Again? Another one, another one? And then when a serious storm comes, it might catch you a little bit off guard,” said Wilson.
“After I saw what happened in Texas and what’s happening all over the country, we’re leaving,” said Faith Herman.
“If it was up to me, I’d evacuate because a hurricane could get bad, especially if you stay by the water,” said Dekota Harris.
It’s something researchers at USF are also examining, as they gather information about Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
Back in May, ABC Action News shared more about a survey researchers are using to learn more about what influenced people to evacuate or stay put during the hurricanes.
“We have seen that with Hurricane Helene, 72 percent stayed, while with Hurricane Milton, with the population that was surveyed, we had 42 percent that stayed,” said Elizabeth Dunn, an Instructor in the College of Public Health at the University of South Florida. “So that shows us just a drastic change and shift in mindset with the population from one storm system to the other within a what, a 10-day period.”
Dunn said that the more data they have, the better they can understand communication strategies, determine whether to target specific populations more closely, and identify areas for improvement.
“I think a large portion of our research really has geared towards the fact that everybody focuses on that category of the storm, and the wind is something that we have to take in consideration, but other hazards are just as important, if not more important, including storm surge and flooding,” said Dunn.
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