Experiencing multiple hurricanes has left many in Florida’s Taylor County feeling exhausted, fearful, and anxious following predictions of a possible Category 3 storm headed their way this week.

Jody Roberts, a lifelong resident of Perry, Florida, often referred to as the “Tree Capital of the South,” mentioned that locals are on high alert. After facing the impact of Hurricane Idalia and then Hurricane Debby, they are not taking any risks.

“We’re getting fed up with this,” Roberts told the YSL News Network – Florida.

The tropical system known as Cyclone Nine, expected to become Helene, has forecasts indicating Florida’s Big Bend could face a Thursday landing from a potential Category 3 hurricane, as per meteorologists and prediction models.

The National Hurricane Center stated that the system is expected to strengthen over the coming days as it moves through the Gulf, leading to a chance of rapid intensification.

While it’s still too early to determine the exact landfall point, it remains a possibility that Taylor County could again face a hurricane—marking the third time in just over a year.

There’s also a chance it could shift westward, reminiscent of Hurricane Michael, a Category 5 storm from 2018 that caused widespread destruction and snapped trees effortlessly across Florida’s northern coast.

Joe Worster, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Tallahassee, mentioned the hurricane is anticipated to escalate into a high-end Category 2 storm, nearing Category 3 status, as it approaches the Gulf Coast on Thursday morning.

“I can’t offer any specific advice right now; we just have to take it one day at a time and monitor the situation,” Roberts stated.

‘We’re still hurting’

Michelle Curtis has dedicated over 50 years to the forestry industry and expressed that the community is still recovering from the devastating effects of Hurricanes Idalia and Debby.

“We’re still hurting,” Curtis said.

Idalia, which hit as a Category 3 storm, covered U.S. 98 with fallen limbs, branches, and broken utility poles. The storm resulted in more than 300,000 homes losing power across Northeast Florida.

The two storms combined led to approximately $500 million in agricultural losses, as indicated by an analysis from the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, based on surveys from producers.

The extent of the devastation in Perry was such that locals humorously referred to it as “Blue Tarp City.”

Even with Hurricane Debby, which was a Category 1 storm and struck in August, many roofs still displayed blue tarps as a result of prior damage.

“They didn’t have insurance for repairs,” Curtis pointed out.

Having her own tree farm, Curtis shared how Debby flattened 70 acres of pine trees she had been nurturing for a year and a half.

“Hurricanes have these wind patterns—it could’ve been tornadoes that Debby spun,” she sadly noted.

“But they were beautiful,” she recalled about the trees.

Wishing for a break from Helene

Residents of Cedar Key, a small coastal town southwest of Gainesville, are just beginning to recover from a significant fire that impacted four businesses last Thursday.

“If a hurricane comes through, that debris will scatter everywhere,” remarked Debbie McDonald, general manager of the Cedar Inn Motel. “That’ll just create a whole new mess.”

When Idalia struck Cedar Key last year, water flooded the motel’s first floor, ruining the tile, McDonald recounted.

She realized they were in trouble when The Weather Channel’s Jim Cantore decided to stay at her hotel.

“When Jim Cantore arrives in your town, it’s a bad sign,” she joked.

She hopes he doesn’t make his way back this time.

Jackson County farmers, affected severely by Michael, prepare for the latest storm

This storm threatens to arrive just two weeks before the six-year anniversary of Hurricane Michael, which had devastating effects on Panhandle farms, destroying timber and various crops.

Jeff Pittman, a fourth-generation farmer of peanuts and cotton in Jackson County, watched the forecasts with concern. Michael devastated his peanut and cotton crops, harmed livestock, and destroyed barns, fences, and irrigation systems.

His JG Farm, located just north of Two Egg, was taking steps to prepare for the approaching storm. Just ten days into peanut-harvesting season, he halted the inverters that dig up the crop. Additionally, he ensured generators are ready to pump water to his cows and those of his neighbors.

“We’re doing everything we can think of to be prepared,” Pittman stated. “We’re treating this matter very seriously. It appears to be potentially dangerous come Thursday.”

For inquiries, you can contact James Call, associated with the YSL News NETWORK-Florida Capital Bureau, at jcall@tallahassee.com or on X @CallTallahassee. You can reach out to Jeff Burlew, an investigative journalist with the Tallahassee Democrat, via jburlew@tallahassee.com.