ST. MARKS, Fla. -- As fast as Hurricane Michael pushed an unprecedented amount of water into St. Marks, it pulled it right back out.
"Worse than any of the other storms we've seen thus far," said Riverside Cafe shift manager Rob Crawford.
But the historic storm surge is staying in the record books. "This was our previous record," said Crawford as he showed a mark on a wood beam. "And then we made a two feet advance from that."
Inside Riverside Cafe, Michael left his mark. "The kitchen, everything is flipped upside down," Crawford said.
A seagrass-filled bar, a muddy floor, and water-logged equipment are the messy reminders from Michael.
"Working together to get the restaurant back up and running," Crawford said.
Huge cleanup effort here at Riverside Cafe in St Marks. Resilient group here @WPTVpic.twitter.com/AsagmztogJ
— Amy Lipman (@AmyLipman) October 11, 2018
St. Marks is known for its fishing and stone crab festival.
"We're hoping to get ready and be known for that. Stone crab season opens on the 15th," said Riverside Cafe owner Stanley West.
St. Marks ought to be known for its resiliency. "Say, that was a record-breaking disaster. We pulled together. we made it through it. we're ready for the next one even."
While much of what was inside Riverside Cafe was destroyed the building wasn't damaged. For that reason, everyone here says they're quite thankful.
