CRESTVIEW, Fla. — For one Crestview family, Hurricane Isaias hit harder than expected.
For Ashley Weeks and her family, the devastation is personal. A tree in their yard split above their house, gutting their roof and carrying stormwater inside.
The owner says they are originally from the area, but have only lived in this house for two years. The destruction caused by Hurricane Isaias extended more than 30 miles inland from the coast.
“It’s just scary, everything, my whole life is in the house,” Weeks said. “We heard something loud, like a bomb had gone off in the house. It was so loud. And I got up and went to look at the tree through the roof and it was scary.”
The tree landed on the roof near her daughter’s bedroom. What was once their ceiling is now just piles of damp debris in their living room and kitchen.
Weeks said she, Brian Johnson, her daughter, their four dogs and a reptile were all inside the home at the time of the accident. Everyone made it out alive.
“I don’t think anyone else would be okay if they experienced something like that,” Johnson said. “But you never think it’s going to happen to you until it does.”
Weeks says his family has called this house home for the past two years. There are certain memories in the house that she wanted to preserve.
“My daughter’s father passed away a few years ago,” Weeks said. “Her necklace with her ashes was in that house, and she was upset that we were bringing this up again, like our photos, which mean the most to us.
Outside the house, a second tree collapsed in the front yard. The family is still coping with the devastation, but is forced to consider their next steps.
Weeks said the family spent the night at his father’s house. His next steps are to figure out how to restore his house.
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