Matthew’s Damage Will Take Months To Assess, Even Longer To Repair

Strips of wood still jut from large mounds of sand and sea oats along the strip of Florida A1A outside Wes Talton’s Vilano Beach home. It is one of just a couple of houses in the area that survived Hurricane Matthew’s slow crawl up the Florida coast a month ago. Though mostly elevated with the garage on the ground floor, the house still suffered extreme flooding. Talton said he wears a mask while working to clear out his ruined belongings. He isn’t even sure the structure is safe for him, his wife and his dog, but they stay there anyway because they have no choice. “This is like a war zone here,” Talton said, gesturing down the road at the heaps of sand and wood along the highway.