Florida residents pick up debris after Hurricane Helene destroyed homes

Florida residents returned to their homes in shock and sadness Friday as they began to pick up the remnants of Hurricane Helene's path of destruction.

Keaton Beach, north of Clearwater, was hit hard: boats were tossed around like toys and then stranded in the middle of flooded streets.

Fonda Neel, a Keaton Beach resident, told ABC News that the home she called her happy place is now gone.

“It’s devastating,” she said. “It’s hard to think.”

Further south, a 10-foot storm surge tore apart parts of Cedar Key. In Treasure Island, off St. Petersburg, the storm sent boats drifting more than 200 meters onto a four-lane causeway.

In the town of Perry, about an hour southeast of Tallahassee, the storm destroyed power transformers and ripped the roofs off homes.

Scott Bembry, a Perry resident, stayed in a shelter at the church to ride out the storm, a decision he said he would never make again.

“I wouldn’t advise anyone to stay here because of one of these storms. Evacuate when it is time to evacuate,” he told ABC News.