PASCO COUNTY, Fla. — The summer hurricanes may be in the past for Tampa Bay residents, but for others, the effects are still felt.

What You Need To Know

  • Pasco Hope can house up to 100 people

  • Pasco Hope housing opened up Oct. 31

  • Many of the people living at the site lost their homes from the hurricanes

Many people lost their homes and didn’t have anywhere to go. 

Seeing this problem, Pasco Hope opened up cottages and campers for community members to move into. 

Lucy Fontanez is one of the people living in a camper. 

“The first day, of course, I was nervous,” she said. “I had never lived in a mobile home or trailer before.” 

Lucy has been living at the site for around two weeks. 

Before the hurricanes, she lived in a condo in New Port Richey. 

With severe damage to her home, she couldn’t stay.

For months, she lived in other places, including a hotel and a shelter in Hudson. 

“We were sleeping on the floor with just a little blanket,” she said. “It was very hard, and I found myself in a shelter with around 300 people.” 

The Director of the Pasco Hope Disaster Shelters, Danielle Husband, said they can shelter up to 100 people between the cottages and campers. 

They first opened on Oct. 31.

Husband said many of those living there are going through similar situations to Lucy. 

“A lot of the folks here were living in mobile park homes or they were renting and the landlords decided that they are not going to fix the property,” she said. “So we’ve got a lot of people now that went from being stably housed for a long time to now having no housing options. So we’re here to help bridge that gap.”

Pasco Hope said they hope to help the unsheltered community members in Pasco County for years to come and Lucy is hopeful she’ll return to her condo in the next four to five months.