The floorboards in Rachel Thomas’ apartment are sodden, sinking under the weight of her footsteps. The kitchen cabinets and drawers are speckled with furry spots of mold. Grime from floodwaters still coat the walls. Outside her bedroom, she glances at the ceiling to a bowl-shaped light fixture that’s filled with water.
“I can’t turn this one on,” she said. “I’m afraid I’ll be electrocuted.”
Thomas stayed in her first floor unit in southern St. Petersburg during Hurricane Helene, horrified as the water rushed in and rapidly filled the rooms. It took all of her might to push the door open to get outside, where she trudged waist-deep to get across the courtyard to shelter with an upstairs neighbor…