Vero Beach neighbors are joining forces to clean up

In Vero Beach’s Center Beach neighborhood, roads are flooded and barely passable. The yards in front of the houses are littered with debris, and some houses are damaged. And the majestic oak trees that provided a canopy for shade from the afternoon sun were virtually gone.

“I would say it’s almost like Armageddon” – Megan Raasvelt, whose house was damaged a block away.

“Wrong,” added Tom Howard, 80, describing his neighborhood on Cypress Avenue, just two blocks from the beach.

He was in the living room with his wife on Wednesday when he saw flying debris hit his front window.

“It shocked me, I actually froze,” says Mr. Howard, who is currently struggling with the lack of electricity.

WPTV reporter Dave Bohman saw a postal worker who appeared to be on an obstacle course to deliver mail to the Howards while roofers were at his home restoring torn tiles.

But Tom Howard feels happy knowing that others lost their lives in Wednesday’s tornado outbreak.

He lost a valuable possession, his antique Jaguar.

“The car was hit multiple times by various branches and logs. We saw a log get blown into the backseat and then get sucked back out,” Mr. Howard said, looking at his car. “It was truly extraordinary. You could probably make an argument for a total loss.

“We try to have an attitude of gratitude,” said Megan Raasveldt, who joined a group of friends to help clean up debris from a friend’s yard.

The same group was at another house on Friday and at Mrs. Raasveldt’s storm-damaged house on Thursday.

“We continue to pay it forward and continue until we are as united as we can be,” she said.

Three blocks south, dozens of crews were cleaning up fallen trees in the business district in front of several bank branches, restaurants and art galleries.

But on nearby Cypress Avenue. Neighbors were informed that power would be restored by the middle of next week.

Cleaning will take longer.

Content only Scripps 2024