DAVIS ISLANDS, Fla. (WFTS) — Days before Helene makes landfall, Davis Islands is sunny and smooth sailing. But behind closed doors, residents are preparing for a storm.
"I just make sure I have enough food in the refrigerator," Kevin King said.
"I got my, you know, water and canned goods and paper towel, you know, stuff like that," Jessie Parks said.
Many say they're not completely worried about the storm because storms generally don't rock Davis Islands too badly.
"I think sometimes it's hyped up a little bit more than it actually ends up being. So I think people know what to do that. You know, I've evacuated a couple times in the past, like with Ian, I evacuated, and I think with Idalia, I evacuated. But last time with Debby, a month ago, I didn't. And, you know, again, the streets flooded, but that was it, you know, it came up to the curb, and then that was it," King said.
Though the people here on the island aren't seeing impacts like other neighborhoods, stormwater here is a conversation happening at the city level.
The City of Tampa received a grant from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to undergo the "Davis Islands Stormwater Analysis", focusing on existing and future conditions of the drainage systems due to sea level rise.
Checking on the drainage systems here on the island will now impact how they address the drainage systems citywide, including areas that may now be seeing more water than ever.
As the city looks into the future of stormwater drainage, Parks says she is "Just trusting in the lord. I'm trusting him. He'll bring me through."
Back-to-back storm events brought record storm surge, rainfall and winds to the Tampa Bay region. The question some are asking now isn’t where people should rebuild, but where we should let nature regain control.
