Huron couple experience hurricane's wrath

HURON — What was supposed to be a couple's anniversary trip turned into a living nightmare as Hurricane Ian slammed ashore in Fort Myers, Florida. Josh and Lizzy Manrow, from Huron, flew to Florida on Sept. 25 for a four-day vacation. With tickets purchased in June, there was no thought that a category 4 hurricane would disrupt their 10th-anniversary plans. As their departure from Ohio grew closer, the Manrows, like many Americans, paid close attention to Hurricane Ian's approach. "We debated going," Lizzy Manrow said. "Josh said it was supposed to hit the Tampa area." Tampa and Fort Myers are approximately 100 miles apart. They thought there would be some rain and maybe thunderstorms but nothing serious would occur where they were going. On a Tuesday afternoon, the day before Ian came ashore, the couple visited the beach. Lizzy said it was nearly deserted. She said they saw business owners stacking sandbags in front of doors and boarding up windows. The sustained wind speed was picking up. Josh suggested the couple take a walk down the fishing pier, but Lizzy thought it was too windy. Neither thought it would be their last chance. They didn't realize Ian was about to take everything out. The pier, along with much of Fort Myers, would be decimated by the power of the storm. Ian arrives They spent part of the day Tuesday driving around looking for gasoline. Lizzy said people were only allowed to purchase $15 worth at a time. After getting their limit at one station, they decided it was best to go back to the condo to prepare. All Wednesday morning, the electricity flickered several times, according to Lizzy. They kept their phones on chargers, knowing that the electricity would eventually go out and stay out. They also filled the bathtub with water, as the water service was going to be cut off. They located flashlights in the condo and made sure the batteries were good. As they were sitting in the living room, they heard the wind beating against the building. Then the power went out. Sitting in the dark, Lizzy heard a loud bang. She walked out to the balcony and saw the condo's carport had been ripped from the ground, and parts of it were flying around. After the storm passed, they found the car they were using only had a mirror snapped off of it. Most of the other vehicles in the parking area were undrivable, Lizzy said. They did not sleep during the storm. They sat in darkness, listening to the howling winds lash against the condo. Thursday morning, with winds dissipating as Ian cut its swath across the Florida panhandle and back toward open water, they were alerted that their Saturday replacement flight home had been canceled. "The aftermath, for us, fortunately, was worse," Lizzy said. The condo survived the storm. The car they were driving was operational. Most of the other cars at the resort were undrivable. The couple ventured out in search of gas on Thursday morning. "We didn't realize what was out there," Lizzy said, referring to the devastation. "It was like we were in a third-world country," she said. "All you could hear was helicopters and sirens. There was no power, no internet and no water." Searching for fuel She said it was a scene hard to explain to people who had not lived through a similar event. The couple witnessed fights at gas stations. "Everyone was stressed and desperate," Lizzy said. The search for gas took them more than 30 miles from the condo. They could not get gas anywhere because there was no power to the pumps at stations. With a dwindling amount of gas in the tank, the couple decided to head back to the condo. When they had nearly arrived, they saw a gas station with a line all the way out to the highway. But no one was pumping. After asking several people, Lizzy found out those in line were waiting for a generator to arrive to power the pumps. That evening, they heard a rumor that a station 40 miles away had operational pumps. They borrowed a neighbor's car and started out for gas. Upon finding the station, they did see people pumping. Then they realized they did not have a gas can. Lizzy said Josh went into the attached convenience store and searched for a gas can. He found one, not in plain view, hidden behind other items. They bought the 5-gallon container and filled it with fuel. Josh was confident we had enough gas to get out of the badly affected area, Lizzy said. Leaving Florida The couple went to sleep Thursday night. When they awoke Friday morning, without knowing when airlines would start operating again, the two decided to pack up and drive home. Their peril was not over. Lizzy said almost as soon as they got on the interstate, the car's low fuel light came on. The Manrows stopped at four consecutive exits to find they were unable to get gas. The car was running on fumes as they approached the next exit. They knew they needed gas or they would be stuck. "We were able to fill the tank at that fifth exit," Lizzy said. "We knew we had about 400 miles worth of fuel." That was enough fuel to get them to Georgia, well out of the areas of major destruction. They found out later that if they had not departed when they did, they may have been stuck in Fort Myers as a portion of Interstate 75 flooded and the road was closed. Without stopping, Lizzy and Josh drove the 19 hours back home to Huron. Something the couple appreciated most about their ordeal was the many people who reached out to them to make sure they were okay. "Even people I barely know were reaching out," Lizzy said.