‘Like a bomb went off’: Remembering Hurricane Ivan, 20 years after landfall in Northwest Florida

ESCAMBIA COUNTY, Fla. ( WKRG ) — Monday marks 20 years since Hurricane Ivan made landfall on the Gulf Coast, devasting communities.

For the Simses, residents of Grande Lagoon, looking at photos taken in the aftermath of Hurricane Ivan still brings back a flood of emotions 20 years later.

“It was heartbreaking. Seriously heartbreaking. Everyone broke down in tears when they saw what was left — if there was anything left,” John Sims said.

Many residents in the Grande Lagoon neighborhood off Gulf Beach Highway evacuated. But when they returned, their neighborhood was unrecognizable.

“Didn’t realize when we came back that everything was gonna be history,” Curtis Mitchell, Grand Lagoon resident, said.

“Our neighborhood was totaled. Like a bomb went off,” Sims said.

For both The Simses and Curtis Mitchell, their homes were still standing. But the damage left a long road of repairs.

“The water was over my head in my house,” Mitchell said.

“The water had washed everything out underneath completely. No stairs, no walls, anything down here. The water had gone up to where the porch is up there, which is about 13 feet,” Sims said.

When Hurricane Sally came exactly 16 years later to the date, the Simses were ready to put up the ‘for sale’ sign. But they simply couldn’t leave their neighborhood behind

“I thought I don’t want to go do this again. I actually thought I need to sell this house and move some where else but I got to thinking where else would I go that’s any nicer,” Sims said.

One of the many things hurricane Ivan left in its path, lessons to be learned.

“When you see a freight train coming, you get off the track,” Mitchell said.

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