TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Safety is first, especially for 99-year-old Earlene Newton. Her daughter-in-law, Jeanne Newton, is helping with the temporary move ahead of Hurricane Helene.
“She’s almost a 100-years-old and we want to be sure we were not going to be stuck at the last minute,” Newton said.
She has lived in the Dana Shores community, just west of Tampa International Airport for more than 50 years. This is not the first time a storm’s impacts have threated her home and safety.
“The water has come up but not come into the house. But again, better to be safe than sorry and I’m worried about the electricity going out,” Newton said.
Even though most neighbors appear to be sticking around, they all live in Evacuation Zone A which is under a mandatory evacuation order in Hillsborough County.
“Everybody has to make their own decisions. They don’t have a 100-year-old to worry about,” Newton said.
A few miles away from the Newton family, the airport is preparing for impacts from the hurricane.