Unseasonably cold weather in the Tampa Bay region this winter is creating new challenges for homeowners still recovering from the 2024 hurricane season, disaster preparedness officials say.
The 10 Tampa Bay Weather Team reports the region is not finished with the current cold snap. Experts warn the prolonged freeze could further damage homes already weakened by Hurricanes Helene and Milton, potentially delaying rebuilding efforts for up to two years.
The cold temperatures can be especially concerning for residents of mobile homes and for homeowners whose properties remain under repair. Without proper insulation, pipes are vulnerable to freezing.
“Then you would also add what they call heat tape to that,” said David Cruz, disaster preparedness coordinator with the Knights of Columbus Diocese of St. Petersburg, referring to insulating exposed pipes.
Disaster relief experts say homes damaged during the hurricanes may lack insulation and other cold-weather protections, increasing the risk of costly damage.
“If they didn’t get insulation in, the chance of their pipes freezing or even what you call the spicket, which is that faucet on the outside of the house, if that freezes, you can have losses of hundreds of thousands of gallons of water, which people have to pay for,” Cruz said.
Cruz works with Pasco, Pinellas, Hillsborough and Citrus counties during and after natural disasters. He said neighborhoods on the west side of Pasco County, including areas near Signal Cove Drive west of U.S. Highway 19 in Hudson, still show signs of devastation from the fall 2024 storms.
“You can drive through these neighborhoods, which are on the west side of Pasco County and they basically look like ghost towns,” Cruz said.
In addition to coordinating relief efforts, Cruz volunteers by going door-to-door to check on residents who cannot drive or who lost their cars during the storms. He described assisting a 94-year-old woman who has been unable to return to her condo since the hurricanes.
“She has not been in her home,” Cruz said. “She still has a fair amount of work that has to be done.”
Cruz said he is meeting with the long-term disaster recovery team in Pasco County to address ongoing needs tomorrow.
Pasco County’s Better Future initiative is allocating more than $585 million in federal funding for hurricane survivors. The first of several informational events is scheduled for Feb. 17 from 6 to 7 p.m. at the Gulf Harbor Civic Association in New Port Richey.