May 15, 2025

By Miriam Jordan

Burnett said, “We lost all we had.” Burnett is a manager of a gun shop. Burnett, a gun store manager, said: “We lost everything we had.”

“All of my children’s clothing, my guitars and guns, my entire collection, was gone.” “The only thing that came out positive is the guys I hired.”

These “guys,” who were in the country without permission, are four illegal immigrants who Burnett employed to sort through all the dirt.

These workers are part of an illegal immigrant labor force that has been helping communities clean up after hurricanes and earthquakes in Florida, among other places. As the hurricane season in Florida intensifies this year, it is possible that there are fewer available workers than needed.

Governor Rick Scott signed a law in May that would prohibit immigrants without legal status from working and living in Florida.

Ron DeSantis has signed a bill to prevent immigrants with no legal status living or working in Florida. He has called the law the most aggressive in the country.

It rejects driver’s licences from out of state issued to illegal immigrants, and makes transporting them to Florida a crime. Maria, an immigrant from Honduras in Louisiana, said, “There’s a lot to do, but we don’t want to risk deportation.”

She said that she would no longer travel there in the future in order for her family and herself, in order, help clean up after hurricanes.

Maria, a Honduran immigrant in Louisiana who worked as a hurricane cleanup worker in Florida last year said that she will not travel there again. Maria, along with other immigrants in Florida who were harassed after the Florida Legislature approved the measure but before its implementation on July 1st. They fear arrest and being handed over to the federal government for detention or deportation.

DeSantis’ office failed to respond Wednesday when asked for comment on questions regarding law enforcement and the impact immigration decisions have had on hurricane recovery.

Carlos, who is a Texas-based worker with no legal status and a Maryland driver’s license, says he usually assembles crews to clean up the debris left by hurricanes in Florida, and then repairs, installs windows, doors and floors.

He said that the crew worked continuously for seven months after Hurricane Ian in Fort Myers, and customers were recommending them to friends. He said that when the Florida legislature passed immigration laws, the crew left as soon as they could.

Carlos, who lives in Houston and has spent 13 years of his 20-year stay in the United States, said that despite the fact Idalia had flooded homes and businesses all the way from Tampa Bay up to Big Bend, Florida, they would not be helping with recovery. .

He said: “Imagine getting arrested for doing something that helps others and being deported,” Resilience Force is a non-profit that provides disaster relief workers and safety training. More than half the 1,000 people who responded to an informal survey this summer conducted by Resilience Force said they did not intend to return to Florida during hurricane season due to the laws.

Saket Soni is the executive director at Resilience Force. “Florida’s residents may be unable to access thousands of disaster recovery workers who are trained to help them rebuild after Idalia. He said that “these workers are predominantly immigrants.”

On August 30, Hurricane Idalia hit Florida’s Gulf Coast with wind speeds of up to 200 km/h. It demolished roofs, knocked trees down and downed electrical lines. Crystal River in Florida, located about 80 miles from Tampa, was flooded by torrential rainfall and rising stormwater.

Water in large quantities caused the city’s sewer system to fail. Water was gushing out from the toilet in Burnett’s house like a geyser. It pierced the ceiling, flooding the entire home.

Burnett and Layla the dog were stuck in the house with 1.8 m of rotten water when firefighters rescued them with an airboat. Kelly Burnett (37), who returned with her two children aged 3 and 7, to their home, found that the belongings of her family had become a “soaked mess” consisting only of trash.

He said it was “devastating”. Michael Burnett suffers from eczema, which is made worse by bacteria. Their elderly parents could not help. Michael Burnett, while shopping at Home Depot, saw some Latinos holding signs that said: “Demolition Restoration and Transport”.

He hired them and before Burnett could get back home, they had already parked outside his turquoise house. They rummaged for four days through boxes of soggy toys and clothing, along with other items. Kelly Burnett, who was present at the event, said that if they came across anything in the pile they felt had sentimental worth, they brought it to her.

This included a photo of Kelly as a young child. Michael Burnett gave them an additional $500 for their last day of work. He said, “If they are willing to help people that they do not know and make some money, then they deserve the whole world.”

Rogelio, the group leader from Honduras, who had worked on post-storm clean up since Hurricane Katrina 2005, explained that they were willing to travel to Florida because “we trust God to protect us.” He said there are many homeowners in Crystal River asking for assistance, but “the workers are just not here.”

The New York Times/Zack Wittman: Rising floodwaters and torrential rainfall flooded places like Crystal River, Florida. Crystal River is located about 80 miles from Tampa. (Zack Wittman/The New York Times).

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