PORT RICHEY, Fla — The trucks and front loaders arrived at the Pineland Mobile Home Park on Saturday and have been working almost nonstop ever since.
“We are working two 12-hour shifts. 7 am-7 pm and 7 pm to 7 am.”
Tim Fahey is with Pasco County-based Nova Land Creations. They were hired as part of FEMA’s clean-up efforts.
“A lot of crews coming through all the neighborhoods and doing the best we can to get through every street. And that’s where we are at right now. Started in Hudson. Working our way down.”
Kim’s home was filled with water.
“Basically right where she’s standing in the window.”
For days, she watched debris pile up, wondering when it would be hauled away.
“It’s not fair just because we are not shore acres and not rich people. We are low-income people. It’s not fair. It’s a state of emergency everybody should be included.”
Kim says she felt like her neighborhood in Port Richey was forgotten.
“Until I reached out to you and then all of a sudden we were flooded with trucks coming through.”
Officials in Pasco County say they’ve collected more than 250,000 cubic yards of debris, but that’s still only 18% of the estimated amount.
There is a lot of frustration from the people still surrounded by junk.
“They understand, but they don’t understand if that makes sense. And we are just trying to be as nice as we can and let them know we are going to get out of their way as soon as soon as we can. But in these types of events like this where you have the streets everything has to go to the middle and then we scoop and dump and then we are out of here.”
Pasco officials say they are prioritizing pick-up based on health and safety impact and access to businesses.
Drop-off locations in Dade City and Spring Hill are still available for people to use at no cost.
This interactive map shows the estimated pickup date in your area.
When will the water go away?
Two weeks after Milton, many Pasco County residents are questioning if rapid development has played a role in unprecedented flooding.
