Five people dead in Pinellas County due to Hurricane Helene

Five people died in Pinellas County during the impact of Hurricane Helene, according to Cathie Perkins, emergency management director.

It’s one of the many ways that Helene brought “life-changing impacts” as storm surge reached 8 feet in some areas, Perkins said.

”It’s hard, but we will continue to recover as a community,” Perkins said.

Of the fatalities, two occurred in Treasure Island, two were in Indian Rocks Beach and one was in Dunedin, according to Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri.

At least two were drownings and the others remain under investigation, but all were storm-related, Gualtieri said.

The sheriff said names of the deceased were...