CHARLOTTE COUNTY, Fla. — As crews work around the clock to restore power after Hurricane Ian, teams are also working to get people the supplies they need to get through the tough recovery process.
On Friday, Ashley Burke waited in line at a food and water distribution site at the Charlotte Sports Park. She shared how Hurricane Ian damaged her home.
“As we were lifting the box spring out, the roof kind of almost collapsed on us, but we were able to do everything safely, put most of it into the living room, and then a few hours later, the living room collapsed,” said Burke.
She’s one of the many people now finding a way forward after all the devastation. On Friday, about 1,300 families came to the distribution site.
“We need water. We have some, but we want to make sure because we don’t know how long this is going to last,” said Diane Lanovara.
The Florida Army National Guard helped in the process, distributing about 2,600 cases of water and about 1,300 boxes of MREs.
County officials said they’ll have two more distribution sites open in south and west Charlotte County soon.
“I’m a native Floridian,” said Lanovara. “I’ve been through a lot of hurricanes, but this one was pretty bad.”
Still, people know they’re not recovering from the storm alone.
“I just thank God for all these amazing things,” said Carol Nelson. “People come, the community come together and come and help us. We thank God for that."
The Charlotte Sports Park distribution site, located at 2300 El Jobean Road, will be open daily from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. until further notice.