SARASOTA, Fla. — Recovery continues for so many communities hit hard by Debby.

One such community is Laurel Meadows in Sarasota. More than 80 homes were flooded, and many residents there didn’t have flood insurance.

Richard Watson has lived in Laurel Meadows since 2012 and has seen a lot of different storms hit the area, but he never saw intense flooding.

That all changed last week. Waters from a nearby lake quickly rose and eventually flooded every single home within the community.

“Never been flooded before. We were all caught off guard,” Watson said.

He, like many others in this community, never got flood insurance because he says he doesn’t live in a flood plain. He says that the flooding could be a result of nearby new construction, but that hasn’t been determined yet.

“I waded out in waste deep water to be rescued by a boat, only to be delivered 300 feet down the end of my street, down at the end of my neighborhood where the water stopped," Watson said. "We were the pond in the middle. How did that happen? It never happened before."

The damage in the community is vast, but recovery is under way. Debris that was once furniture, memories, cherished items are now discarded junk, waiting to be removed on the curb outside.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is making its way through the community to determine what kind of assistance can be offered.

Watson says he lost most of everything he owns.

“I am still trying to process all that, because there are so many pieces in place, so much logistics. Because even when I do have this house back up, I'll never live in this house again," he said.

Watson was planning on selling his home before the storm hit and move out of state. Now, he is wondering what to do next.