Time has run out for more than one hundred families in Fort Pierce.
The city condemned 144 units at Sabal Chase Apartments because of severe flooding caused by Hurricane Irma. The residents had two days to quickly vacate their apartments and that deadline was reached on Thursday evening.
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Luckily, the residents are not alone. Volunteers from churches, St. Lucie County, the city of Fort Pierce and even law enforcement showed up in droves to help move belongings out of the units and into U-Hauls.
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Disabled veteran Robert Randolph is thankful for the help from countless volunteers.
“It’s been remarkable, I thank everyone for that," he said. “They’re God sent, honestly, they’re God sent. I thank God for them helping out."
About 50 volunteers from Christ Fellowship worked tirelessly on Thursday helping to move furniture and boxes out of the homes of Randolph and his neighbors.
“We’re just trying to help in any way we can honestly. Every building that’s here, the first floor was flooded. We had lots of residents who hadn’t even begun to pack," said Travis O’Neal, a pastor at the Christ Fellowship's Port St. Lucie campus.
The church also provided food and water for residents. A Red Cross tent has been set up under a pavilion on the apartment property to help process evacuees into shelters and other housing options.
“This is the time where we can come, provide hope and encouragement to the residents," said O'Neal.
Randolph's carpet in his unit is still soaked with flood water, leaving behind the potential for dangerous mold to form.
“I wish it hadn’t of done what it did because I’ve lived here a long time and I love my little cubby hole," he said. "Like I said, it is what it is.”
Besides dealing with Irma's aftermath, Randolph is also battling cancer but his spirit is still strong.
“They diagnosed me with lung cancer. What am I crying about? My book of life was written before I was born, I can’t go up to heaven and erase anything," he told WPTV. “I have one more treatment of radiation, one more! But I try my best, with what I’ve been through, I try my best to keep a positive attitude. Because there’s no need to cry, no need to be sad. It could’ve been worse.”
Randolph plans to go back to his home once restoration is complete. Fow now, he will be staying in an assisted living facility.
“Until FEMA or someone finds me somewhere to go," he said. “Is there devastation? Yeah. But we have to get over that. Everyone has to move on and move on.”
His neighbor Jenice Faneite was too busy helping others before helping herself through the flood. Volunteers spent all day Thursday quickly helping her move her salvageable belongings out before the deadline.
“We have people who are on chemo, people who are in wheel chairs. A lot of disabled here. I was like no, no, no -- I gotta help them," she said.
Faneite planned for one disaster but said she didn't plan for two.
“I just opened up a beauty salon in the Orange Business Center and I didn’t expect that to get flooded. And I didn’t expect my home to get flooded. But you know what, you don’t hold on to material things, you stay in the moment and you’re grateful for the life you have," she said. “If you stay positive, positive is going to be productive. If you stay negative, it’s going to be destructive.”
The apartment complex promised to give $500, a pro-rated rent check and their security deposits back to residents who had to vacate their units. So far, neighbors told WPTV that promise is being upheld as they figure out the next step.
“I think they’re doing the best they can because this was unexpected to them as well. They have been in real good spirits," said Faneite.
The upstairs apartments are not condemned. Property management said they went door to door and inspected every unit on the second and third floor for water damage and mold, and said they have no concern over those units being unsafe.
Faneite said even those residents living above her have been stepping up to the plate to help.
“We had a big crew of people who lived upstairs on the third floor -- one woman whose husband had a heart attack, another woman whose about to give birth. They were out here helping us load trucks," she said.
Sabal Chase is already working with four different restoration contractors -- which were out on the property Thursday -- to return begin work on the units. A St. Lucie County commissioner said the restoration process in the units could take anywhere from two to three months.