🌀 What we've learned

It's Friday. Bring on the weekend.

Sunny, then showers. 90°/74°.

• Sounds like: "When You Believe," Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey

🎂 Happy birthday to our Axios Tampa Bay member Susan Lewis!

Today's newsletter is 903 words, a 3.4-minute read.

One week ago, Hurricane Helene laid bare Tampa Bay's vulnerabilities — and its strengths.

• Here are four takeaways from our community's worst storm in a century.

Water, not wind

The 5-8 feet of storm surge the National Weather Service predicted played out with horrifying precision.

• A dozen people died in Pinellas County alone, the majority from apparent drowning, almost all on the beaches or in coastal areas of the mainland, the Sheriff's Office said.
• The youngest was 37. The oldest was 95.

Among the dead:

• Donna Fagersten, 66, a second-grade teacher who was a week away from retirement, Fox 13 reported.
• Jerome Waite, 89, whose affection for the kids in his neighborhood after his wife died made him the unofficial grandpa of St. Pete's Riviera Bay, per the Tampa Bay Times.
• Patricia "Patti" Mikos, 80, a former hairdresser who, after moving to Florida, offered haircuts and friendship to retirement home residents, the Times reported.

A long road ahead

It will take months for storm-torn areas to recover. The sheer amount of debris dredged up from waterways and piled on curbs is staggering.

• "We're dealing with a flooding event that is generating several million cubic yards of debris," Pinellas public works director Kelli Hammer Levy said Thursday during a news conference.
• By comparison, Hurricane Irma in 2017 produced about 600,000 cubic yards of debris.

The big picture: Recovery includes far more than clean-up.

• Across Hillsborough and Pinellas, hundreds of thousands of people live in the hard-hit evacuation Zone A. The number of destroyed homes in Pinellas is approaching 300.
• Considering all the destroyed businesses, a lot of people will be out of a job, particularly in the tourism-backed service industry.

The bottom line: Storm survivors will need our time, money and support for years to come. Click for ways to help.

Stronger together

If there's any silver lining, it's all of the people and organizations that have stepped up to help. Just a teeny tiny sampling:

• With Gulf Beaches and Madeira Beach elementary schools wrecked by Helene, local schools taking in displaced students clapped, cheered and left encouraging notes to welcome them into the fold.
• These two friends from St. Petersburg were among the many boaters who used their own vessels to ferry supplies to and evacuate people from the barrier islands.
• Volunteers from Gulfport have made it their mission to care for seniors in a South Pasadena high-rise that for several days had no water or air-conditioning.

An Axios Tampa Bay reader shared a text from her mother who was floored by the outpouring of help in Indian Rocks Beach:

• "None of that repairs the devastation," she wrote, "but it helps a little to know there's good people out there."

Keep reading: It could have been worse

More than 30 new state laws took effect this week, including a ban on sleeping in public and a requirement for flood disclosures in real estate transactions.

Notable laws that went into effect this week:

• SB 764: Rape kit and DNA evidence is now required to be kept and stored anonymously for a minimum of 50 years if a crime goes unreported to law enforcement. Previously, law enforcement had no guidance on how long kits should be kept.
• HB 403: Drivers can choose from a new lineup of specialty license plates — including one that honors the late Jimmy Buffet — that will support corresponding charitable organizations.
• HB 341: Drivers with a disability can voluntarily indicate on their record if they are living with a disability when filling out registration forms. The law includes parents of children who've been diagnosed.
• HB 1389: Strengthens penalties for photographing or videoing someone without their consent and while in private for those 19 years old and older.

Spread the word

💰 Elon Musk secretly contributed $10 million to support Gov. Ron DeSantis' unsuccessful run for president. The money was routed through an LLC and a dark money nonprofit, concealing its origins. (Wall Street Journal)

🗳️ DeSantis is allowing elections supervisors in 10 Helene-ravaged counties to loosen restrictions on mail ballot requests, change early voting sites and establish consolidated voting centers. (CBS News)

• Those counties: Pinellas, Hillsborough, Manatee, Sarasota, Citrus, Charlotte, Dixie, Lee, Levy and Taylor.

⛈️ The Tampa Bay area is expected to get heavy rain next week, raising concerns that areas that flooded during Helene could be inundated again. (Tampa Bay Times)

🥇 Tampa International Airport was named America's Best Large Airport and Best Airport for Dining in USA Today's 2024 Best Readers' Choice Awards. (USA Today)

Floridians ride Brightline's high-speed rail from MiamiCentral to Aventura, Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton and more.

Okay, but: On average, riders travel nearly nine miles with Uber to reach these stations — extending Brightline's reach beyond the tracks.

Here's how Uber and Brightline are helping.

Meet Blue, a 7-year-old mixed breed with a gentle spirit.

State of ruff: This fluffy good boy is technically considered a senior pet, but he's got plenty of play left in him, his caretakers at Pasco County Animal Services say.

• His eye abnormality makes him "a true testament to the beauty of embracing our differences," they added.

Interested? Contact Pasco County Animal Services at (813) 929-1212 or book an appointment online here to visit him.

Share this story

Millions of people in the Southeast lost power as Hurricane Helene tore through communities from Florida to Virginia, and everywhere in between. Many remain in the dark days later.

The intrigue: The National Weather Service released this view from space that illustrates the trail of darkness left by Helene.

• The photo above was taken from a NOAA satellite on Saturday, Sept. 28, more than a day after the storm's landfall in Florida.

Show a friend

Did you know Uber helps 3K+ people get to and from Brightline stations across Florida weekly?

Through Vouchers API, Brightline has delivered 51,000+ Uber trips — while reporting decreased operational costs — to help address first-mile/last-mile challenges.

Learn the benefits for riders.

💤 Kathryn is looking forward to some rest (AKA watching the new season of Love is Blind) this weekend.

👋 Yacob is back after a day off.

This newsletter was edited by Jeff Weiner.