Pine Island in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian

[MarkFilterDeveloper]

I grew up on Pine Island (St. James City). Though I moved away after joining the military, my heart is heavy with the devastation post Hurricane Ian. "Islanders support islanders"! Please don't let the coverage only shine on Sanibel, Captiva, and Fort Myers Beach. Continue to include Matlacha and Pine Island like you all did in this segment. You are doing a great service to the community when equal coverage is distributed for all who are impacted by this storm. Thank you!

[davondiehl]

I am a Pine Island Resident stuck off island with my home out there destroyed. We are pine island strong and we survive. Thank you for seeing that. You guys are THE FIRST new channel to make a solid and meaningful story. That may be because it's difficult and that I understand. But you made it happen and for that I thank you. PINE ISLAND WONT BE FORGOTTEN

[JessH]

My heart is breaking for that mother. Omg I can't imagine. We all need to come together as a community and help

[monterock]

I really appreciate hearing this report. So much of the reporting I've watched has been focused on the damage to property, infrastructure, etc. It's good to hear reporting about the people and what they're going through; so many people adversely impacted by this storm! Take care of the people first then take care of the property.

[tomscott]

of the dozens of reports i've seen, this was _by far_ the most well done: sincere, direct, and real upon a pure foundation of humanity. my mom is less than 25 miles from this island, but the devastation here is 5-10 times greater.

[sarasweightlossjourney]

Oh my goodness as soon as that woman started talking about her daughter and how her daughter was gone and passed away I just started sobbing uncontrollably. I feel her pain through her voice and I just can't even fathom how much she's going through her and her husband... oh my goodness
Thank you so much for giving these people a voice and helping them not feel forgotten.

[_EvanDean]

UPDATE: I was able to get in touch with a family member and Susan & Jim DID make it off Pine Island.

“We have been safely evacuated by Coast Guard to Cape Coral. Staying with friends who have a generator, ” is the message sent to me by their family.

[cindyross]

Thank you so much for doing this story! My parents have had a place there for many years. They are a resilient community for sure.

[lindahigginbotham]

People, please listen to the emergency warnings when they tell you to evacuate. Especially if you have a medical situation. I live in Florida and if I lived in any of the places along the water that were told to evacuate, without hesitation, I would be calling and looking for a place to go. There are many places to go to protect yourself. They broadcast it regularly there would be no help after the hurricane started. As harsh as this sounds, it is selfish to risk the lives of first responders when you could have evacuated before hand. To think your tough enough to weather out a 150 mph Hurricane is naive.

[psalmer]

By far the best news report I've seen so far from any source. A mature, informed, humble reporter in the trenches giving a sober account of the reality he's observing. This is the way news should be done. No more kids fresh out of journalism school hyperventilating over waving palm fronds, puddles in the parking lot, and a bent stop sign. Give us more Evan Dean please!

[kmcdivot]

Thank you for covering Pine Island. Often forgotten since it isn't a multi million dollar island like Captiva.

[jsU]

My grandparents used to live on Matlacha until the combo of rising taxes and flood insurance was too much for pensioners and moved to Cape Coral before passing in 2017. My great grandmother lived in St James City until she passed about 12 years ago. Seeing those places since the 1970s were wonderful memories of the FL fishing village past that mostly remained up to the early 2000s. Matlacha in particular had added a quaint art district by the mid 2010s, reminded me of Sedona AZ art district. Hard to see the devastation from Ian, and prayers and donations to the FL disaster fund are the least I can offer.

[magsstewart]

Thank you for focusing on Pine Island. 🙏

[dianemalesky]

Awesome Story!! We loved the Bridgewater Inn. We stayed in one of the shanties across the street directly across from Bert's Bar. We are so sad for everyone and so thankful for the memories. Sending love and hope to all that were affected so badly by Ian. We are in South Venice and had damage and many huge Live Oaks blow over. Many fortunately missed homes. We feel extremely lucky and plan to help anywhere we can in these hard hit communities. Especially Matlacha. Their resilience is inspiring. Thank you for this amazing coverage.

[tristantristancraped]

fuck man i wasn't expecting that lady to say her daughter was gone. ripped my heart to shreds

[dandersonjr]

Thank you for telling the story about Pine Island. I have a home in St James city and I'm going down in three weeks. I'm not sure how I'm going to get on the Island yet but I'm taking supplies down and since my boat wasn't damaged I'm going to do what I have to to support my neighbors. We'll get organized and support ourselves if the officials think it's too hard and too much trouble.

[laurabarber]

Our hearts are heavy for you! With love from Florida!💝🙏💝

[azmike]

This is a good broadcast. Honest. real. Trustworthy. Thank you. God Bless all of you there.

[erictam]

Part of the story that was missed for those who aren't familiar with the area, that lady who lost her daughter, unable to get to Cape Coral. Cape Coral is only 5 miles from where she was at. That's how dire the situation is.

[btwbrand]

Never underestimate a persons resolve.
I played Everquest for years with a guy who lived in Maine.
Saw him every day for nearly a decade for a few mins or a whole day.
One day he posts he's not going to play for a while and I figured a while would be a week.
He was gone for 4 years. When he gets on for the first time after going missing I ask how he has been and what he has been up too.
He told me there was a storm and it washed several feet of mud over his property. He grew his own food and harvested the trees to build his own house so having everything you own buried under feet of mud was devastating. I never did ask for clarification on what several feet of mud is, but knowing him it could have been 9.
What this man did was dig out his entire property by hand and rebuild by hand. I asked him why he didn't just rebuild on top of the mud and he told me it was not going to support plants, but the land under it would.. so he dug. I asked if he used a tractor or other equipment and he said he did it all with a wheelbarrow and several shovels. When the ground wasn't frozen he was digging it out. When the ground was frozen he was building a house.
When people have their minds set to a task and it's a true resolve there is nothing that can stop them.