Florida Woman Says Milton Could Have Destroyed Helene Insurance Payment

A Florida woman who received her insurance payment for Hurricane Helene the day she evacuated her home for Hurricane Milton is hoping the storm didn’t destroy the check from her insurance company.
Hurricane Helene made landfall as a Category 4 storm on September 26 in Florida’s Big Bend region. It wreaked havoc throughout the Sunshine State before cutting inland and leaving a trail of death and destruction in its path.
Although it made landfall further north, Helene caused damage across Tampa and St. Petersburg as its eye drew parallel with Tampa’s shoreline, National Weather Service (NWS) meteorologist Ali Davis previously told Newsweek, contributing to wind-lashed bridges and dangerous storm surge throughout the area.
Only two weeks later, Hurricane Milton made landfall as a Category 3 storm near Siesta Key, Florida. The storm hit much closer to Tampa and caused excessive damage across Pinellas County, where St. Petersburg is located.
St. Petersburg resident Danielle Jensen saw impacts from both storms, she said during an appearance on Fox Business’s Varney & Company on Friday.
Jensen described feeling thankful for the storm’s wobble further south, which meant the storm surge wasn’t as bad as anticipated. Damage was mostly caused by wind, which tore down trees and caused widespread power outages.
Helene also damaged Jensen’s house. The advance insurance payment to begin repairing the damage arrived at her home the day she and her family evacuated for Milton.
“Ironically, we received our advance payment the day that we evacuated, so we’re hoping it’s there and it’s safe, but the advance payment is all that we’ll see for a few months,” Jensen said. “And then, as we finish out the claim, we should see the remainder.”
Jensen said she’s focusing on the fact that her family is safe, as lost things can be replaced and her home can be rebuilt. However, getting hit by back-to-back hurricanes is still an emotional experience.
“I think it’s a roller coaster of emotions. Inherently, it’s going to be different for everyone,” she said. “It’s definitely challenging when you get back-to-back blows.”
Jensen did not say which company her insurance policy was through.
As of Friday morning, more than 400,000 people in Pinellas County remained without power. Photos and videos of damage from the storm were shared across social media.
Florida’s insurance industry has faced plenty of strain as hurricanes become more powerful. Florida homeowners are paying the highest insurance premiums in the United States, with an average annual premium of $11,163 as of July 2024, according to data shared with Newsweek by the virtual insurance company Insurify.
The national average premium at this time was $2,435 per year.
Before Milton made landfall, Citizens Insurance warned its policyholders that the hurricane was expected to be even more damaging than Helene. With another six weeks left in the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, it’s possible Florida will endure another major hurricane.
As of Friday morning, the National Hurricane Center was monitoring Tropical Storm Leslie and another disturbance in the Atlantic. Leslie is forecast to remain far offshore from the U.S. The other disturbance, near the Cabo Verde Islands off the western coast of Africa, has a 50 percent chance of developing in the next 48 hours.