Hurricane Milton hits Venice with intensity, but less than expected

Grateful. Lucky. Blessed. These are words some Venice residents used to describe themselves and their city after Hurricane Milton made landfall a few miles north of them.

In addition to losing power, cell phone service, water and some vegetation, several residents say their homes did not suffer any serious damage from Wednesday night’s hurricane.

“We had some damage. We had fallen tree limbs and plants and other debris and things like that, but there are a lot of people worse off than us,” Christine Straus said as she handed out coffee to neighbors Thursday morning.

“Anything is hard to find right now, so I hope the coffee helps. We were very blessed.”

The Ohio native said she moved to Venice about seven years ago and has been through four or five hurricanes, but still loves the area.

Tom and Carol Norville, who live on Venice Avenue, say they are grateful.

“We’ve been through a few hurricanes. This is probably the room that was memorable. But this (Hurricane Milton) has come the closest to us so far,” said Tom Norville.

The couple evacuated to Palmer Ranch – about three miles inland – on Wednesday night.

“We came here this morning and to our surprise, the wave didn’t reach here. Our elevation is about 11 feet, and it looks like the wave here was probably about 7 or 8 feet — that was all,’” he said of his home, about a half-mile from Venice Beach.

The couple said their backyard suffered the most damage.

“There’s no water in our house, just yard work,” Carol Norville said. “We breathe a huge sigh of relief now that Milton has passed away.”

In historic downtown, an oak tree in Heritage Park did not survive this hurricane – falling and blocking Venice Avenue. Coastal Mowing and Tree was cutting and removing the tree and other debris Thursday afternoon.

“In Florida, we don’t have true growing seasons because we never get cold (winter), so you can’t count the rings to know the exact age of the tree. However, because of its size in this area, it’s a good bet that this tree is probably between 80 and 100 years old,” said Austin, the tree cutter, noting that the tree may be even older and have survived other major hurricanes. – but not Milton. .

“It passed by Ian. Passed by Irma and Charley. He passed by Helene. Milton was the last straw for her, and she finally came down.”

Several boats from the Freedom Boat Club, in the port of Venice, also did not survive the hurricane well. The strong winds shook the pontoons and piled several on top of each other. A boat ended up on land.

Venice Beach was a favorite destination for many locals who came to take a look at the coast.

“Other than the lifeguard station, it’s still beautiful here,” said Kellie Van Hilton, who weathered the storm with her husband and dogs at their home in North Venice Beach.

“We don’t have power or cell phone service, but our house is fine and we live here, so we know we’re lucky.”