‘It kept getting higher and higher’: Historic river flooding prompts Pasco evacuations

ZEPHYRHILLS, Fla. (WFLA) — Historic river flooding associated with Hurricane Milton prompted voluntary evacuations in Pasco County Friday.

County officials asked people in the following locations to find higher ground immediately:

• Elfers
• Cypress Creek at Worthington Gardens
• Thousand Oaks
• Everyone in low-lying areas or areas prone to flooding

Debbie Murray’s home in Zephyrhills was sitting in feet of water.

She prepared. She filled the sandbags, put up tarps and lots of duct tape, but with enough water, there isn’t much anyone can do.

“Well, we just saw the water keep leaking in and the big bangs and it was the trees falling into the house,” she said. “They came and cut the trees away so we came out of the side window.”

It’s a cautionary tale across Pasco County, that even inland can flood.

“It kept getting higher and higher then sure enough, we were just kind of stuck,” Yasemin Akbas said.

Her front yard is also underwater.

Akbas’s neighbors across the street say in their 20 years here, this neighborhood had never flooded.

“Definitely didn’t see this coming this bad,” she said. “I expected some trees down which there is, but not like this.”

“I didn’t expect an island,” she said.

People escaped on boats while others were rescued by first responders.

One property had water coming up almost to the top of the fence.

Down the street, semi trucks were sitting in feet of floodwater.

The latest concern?

“There’s no gas,” Deborah Greene said.

She has been without power since Hurricane Milton wiped out her electricity Wednesday night.

She’s running out of time to keep the food in her fridge from having to be thrown out.

“We’re running out of gas and if we don’t have that, we can’t plug in our phones, we can’t do anything,” she said.

Just one day at a time,” Murray said. “We’ll just have to make it work.”

These shelters are open to assist anyone needing a place to stay:

• River Ridge Middle and High Schools, 11646 Town Center Road , New Port Richey
• Wesley Chapel Recreation Complex, 7727 Boyette Road , Wesley Chapel
• *Fasano Regional Hurricane Center, 11611 Denton Avenue , Hudson *(Special Needs Only)

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