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Seeking shelter in St. Lucie County a week after Irma

Posted at 4:43 PM, Sep 18, 2017
and last updated 2017-09-18 18:30:25-04

Irene Wilson shows the news clip from her cellphone.  WPTV interviewed her last week as floodwaters inundated her Fort Pierce apartment.  Monday’s rain left her feeling uneasy.

“Still got that fear, a little fear in me.  In time, it’ll go away," said Wilson.

For now, Wilson is bunking at the Red Cross Shelter.  So is Lutricia Wright.

“I woke up, put my feet one the floor and I was actually in water," said Wright, who was also displaced from the Sabal Chase apartments when they flooded after Hurricane Irma.  Wright has been at the shelter set up at the Percy Peek Gymnasium for nearly a week.

“The main thing is you’re talking to people who have been through the same thing and can identify with you," said Wright.

As lives were turned upside down, the shelter has provided some stability.

“To having a roof over your head.  You’ve got lights, you’ve got water, you’re being fed," said Shacarla Bethel.

As of Monday, 37 people were calling this place home, as volunteers offered them future options.

“We are helping them to lay the groundwork of their own recovery," said Arthur Levene, shelter coordinator for the American Red Cross.

Irene Wilson was thrilled to learn her next move was imminent.

“It’s the best feeling ever knowing I’ll have a place to stay by the end of this week," said Wilson.