A north Florida couple who lost everything after three hurricanes is blaming the federal government for their rocky housing situation in Fort Lauderdale.
“Right now we simply are living day-to-day, hour to hour,” said Ellen Peebles, a storm survivor from Suwannee County, located in the state’s Big Bend region. "I am just simply making the phone calls, I am being very aggressive about this situation. My future, my security and my stability depends on this."
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Hurricane Idalia trashed Peebles' north Florida home last year, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency supplied her with a travel trailer.
But the storms kept coming in 2024.
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"And then Hurricane Debbie came through of course, which we had to evacuate for, mandatory evac in Suwannee County, and then Hurricane Helene came through," Peebles said.
Peebles and her fiancé moved south, and have called the Residence Inn Fort Lauderdale Intracoastal their home since Nov. 4.
Peebles has a FEMA document showing her check-out date to be Jan. 14th. Then a text message recently arrived from FEMA saying the agency will stop paying for their hotel this Friday.
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After three hurricanes, and losing everything and having to move, Peebles and her fiancé again find themselves in the midst of another storm, they say by the government agency that’s supposed to help.
“All of the material things can be replaced, but the intangibles, like your security and your sense of comfort, and having a place to call home, all of those things were stripped from us,” she said.
On Tuesday, NBC6 reached out to FEMA for clarification on the conflicting information regarding the hotel dates. So far, FEMA has made no comment.
