Forced from home by Hurricane Helene, they found shelter. Now what’s next?

TAMPA — As Hurricane Helene made its way toward Florida, Ellis Anderton faced a decision this week after seeing the news and making some calls to friends: ride out the storm at home or seek safety in a local shelter.

By Wednesday afternoon, his choice was clear. He decided to go to Middleton High School, where authorities accommodated hundreds of people and families over 72 hours.

“I didn’t want to take any chances,” said Anderton, 78.

Anderton left his modest apartment in South Tampa, not far from Gandy Boulevard, with an old backpack carrying just the basics: a couple of t-shirts, a bottle of water, a blanket, and his cellphone.

The shelter was full, and it wasn’t the most comfortable, he said, but it was a place where he could find what he was looking for in these kinds of emergencies: safety.

“That’s why I came here,” Anderton said. “I spent the last two nights and three days in this shelter. Not too bad, right?”

During Hurricane Helene, six shelters in Hillsborough County opened their doors, providing refuge for a total of 1,574 people, from young families to elderly couples. In Pinellas County, half a dozen shelters hosted 1,643 people. In Tampa, almost 500 sought safety from the storm in a shelter.

For many residents, shelters are also a place to stay when evacuation wasn’t financially possible. One of them was Ronaldo Quinto, 56. Quinto didn’t have anywhere else to go. He’s homeless. So when the storm was coming, he knew the streets weren’t safe he needed shelter.

“I took my belongings and found a good shelter. It’s not a hotel, you know? But it’s a place where I don’t have to worry about anything,” Quinto said. “I just wait and read a magazine while the hurricane passes.”

Quinto stayed at Middleton High School. On Friday afternoon, he was ready to leave and was planning to visit a cousin in Kissimmee, hoping to leave behind the tension and anxiety that Helene had stirred up. He weathered storms before, he said, but something about this one felt different.

“Every year I feel like the hurricane seasons are more violent than the ones before,” said Quinto. “It’s a concern for me, but I can’t imagine what it’s like for others who have families, children, and a home to take care of.”

Among those seeking safety at a local shelter in Tampa was a family of nine refugees from Afghanistan. The Nawabi family came to America less than three years ago looking for peace and safety, but they didn’t know what a major hurricane was until Thursday.

Zagadullah Nawabi, the father, said staying in a shelter was a whole experience, but most importantly they stayed together and safe. His family, which included his wife, Bibi, 35, and their seven children, ages 5 to 17, stayed in the shelter for three nights. Ahmad Nawabi, his oldest son, said for him and his siblings, it was an adventure and a new experience.

“Our home in St. Petersburg is okay, but we’ve seen flooded streets before,” he said. “We didn’t want to risk rushing out in the middle of the night.”

The Nawabi family left the shelter at Middleton High School around 2 p.m. Friday, feeling relieved that the worst was over and their home in St. Petersburg didn’t have much damage, a neighbor told them.

Nidia Pacheco, 54, didn’t feel comfortable leaving her apartment near the University of South Florida, but she had no other option and stayed at Erwin Technical College, another local shelter in Tampa. Her reason was simple: it’s much better to be with others in a safe place and know that the roof “won’t fly off.”

“I feel relieved but sad about all the damage and deaths caused by Hurricane Helene,” Pacheco said. “I wasn’t expecting to see something like this.”

On Saturday morning, another group of residents and friends — Jo Kriese, 82, Ho Young, 75, and Sandra Brodeur, 83 — were ready to return to their apartments on South Manhattan Avenue after staying at Erwin Technical College. They said everyone in the shelter was helping each other, even if they didn’t know one another.

“We had pizza, chicken sandwiches, and sodas,” said Brodeur. “It wasn’t too bad.”

Tampa resident, Andres Rodriguez, 76, was waiting to catch a taxi to return to his small apartment and greet his neighbors. Rodriguez said he had arrived at the shelter at Middleton High School with all his medications and cellphone.

“I made sure to bring everything I needed,” Rodriguez said. “But I can’t wait. There’s nothing like being back home.”