Angela Poteat has been living in the dark in Vero Beach. “It's still hot it's the not time of the year and basically I've had to go and stay at my mother's home,” she said.
Poteat admits living without power is tough. “It's hard being able not sleeping and trying to go to work.”
But she’s grateful Hurricane Matthew didn’t devastate her Vero Beach home. “All in all I have to say it could have been worse.”
The storm still left its mark in her neighborhood. All weekend and now into Columbus Day, people have been cleaning debris and downed trees.
A 50 foot oak tree fell on Angela’s neighbor’s house. A big tree also fell behind John Owing’s home and landed on a power line. Until it’s cleared, crews can’t restore his electricity.
“If you don't lose a tree or have any damage from a power line down you're one of the lucky ones,” he said.
Nearby, a family is making the most of the storm damage. They propped Halloween decorations on the roots of a 70-foot Ficus tree resting on their home.
"In a situation like that, when there's very little that you can do, the best thing you can do is kind of have a laugh at it," said Vero Beach resident Michael Naffziger.
He's grateful the tree didn't damage his home. His 11-year-old daughter, Alyzsa, is counting down until Halloween.
"I thought it was a good idea, and a funny idea, and I'm kinda not sad that it fell anymore," said Alyzsa.
As of mid-afternoon on Monday the city manager said there were still about 160 people without power in Beach.
FPL said in Indian River County, 690 were without power as of 3 p.m. Monday.
