When Hurricane Helene swept through Fort Myers, FL, just days ago, social media influencer Olive Mannella knew the terrifying drill all too well.
For the second time in as many years, her 2.1 million followers on TikTok got a front-row seat to the aftermath, as she and her influencer parents, Christine and Frankie Mannella, and sister Izzy navigated yet another devastating storm.
Their waterfront home, still scarred from Hurricane Ian in 2022, took another hit. As yet another storm, Hurricane Milton, threatens to further batter Florida’s panhandle, we contacted the family to see how they were doing.
“The good thing this time was that we hadn’t built back yet from Hurricane Ian, so we had less to lose,” Frankie tells Realtor.com®. “Just furniture, appliances, personal items, and some Sheetrock. That will all be out of pocket for us. Vehicle damage should be covered. Should, but we’ll see.”
As the family faces the grueling cleanup and recovery process yet again, the Mannellas continue to share their recovery efforts with their millions of TikTok followers. Their videos offer an unvarnished look at how they navigate life after another hurricane—offering insight on the human resilience a natural disaster demands.
Hurricane Ian
After Hurricane Ian flooded the Mannella family home in September 2022, Olive shared their ordeal with her followers, emotion by emotion.
The family didn’t see their home, which they reached by kayak, until two days after the storm. In the video below, the family surveys the damage—and incredible power the storm unleashed. Furniture is strewed across the floors and seemingly tossed into other rooms. The high-water mark of the flooding is only a few inches below the ceiling.
Though she’s feeling “overwhelmed,” mom Christine says she doesn’t feel like talking about what she’s lost because other people’s homes “are in a pile” and worse, some people have lost their lives.
The video ends with the emotional family driving through their devastated community, with entire houses gone, businesses destroyed, and boats tossed onto land in a tangled heap.
@olivemannella we finally got to see our home. seeing all this in person was very sad but we are grateful our house is still standing and that we weren’t here when #hurricaneian hit. ready to come back and get to work @frankiemannella @chrissermannella #fortmyersbeach #floridastrong #mannellafamunfiltered ♬ original sound – olivemannella
(OliveMannella/TikTok)
Day 1 of cleanup
As the Mannella family headed back by boat to start cleaning up their storm-ravaged home, they saw submerged cars and houses.
At their destroyed house, they swept sludge off the floor and cleaned spoiled food from their flooded refrigerator, which Olive called “disgusting.” The family photos on their refrigerator’s front panels somehow remained intact.
They hauled out the furniture and appliances, then covered the windows with tarp.
Frankie called the day “a headache,” but there was a silver lining: They were able to salvage their Jet Ski, so they now had a way to get to and from their flooded property.
@olivemannella day 1 of cleaning the house was quite eventful. I’m still shocked that the jet skii works @frankiemannella @chrissermannella @croixhill #hurricaneian #hurricanecleanup #fortmyersbeach #floridastrong #mannellafamunfiltered ♬ original sound – olivemannella
(OliveMannella/TikTok)
Day 66 of cleanup
Two months after Hurricane Ian destroyed their house, Olive gave her followers another tour of the property.
In the video below, Frankie is doing demo work in the living room while Olive shows off the home’s new doors.
Olive is especially excited about the water heater finally being hooked up.
“Cold showers suck,” she said.
@olivemannella day 66 post #hurricaneian house update! @frankiemannella @chrissermannella #mannellafamunfiltered #fortmyersbeach #family #houserenovation ♬ original sound – olivemannella
It certainly wasn’t smooth sailing when it came to paying for all these repairs—even though the Manellas had insurance.
They were supposed to be covered for flood and wind damage, but they told CBS News that help was difficult to come by.
“Insurance, we’re fighting on both fronts,” Frankie said in March 2023, five months after Hurricane Ian. “Flood for the structural who didn’t come through paying enough, and the wind who says it’s nothing to do with wind, it’s all flood.”
Month 14 house tour
In December 2023, Frankie said on TikTok that he was still fighting insurance—more than a year after Hurricane Ian flooded his home.
He explained that he was “getting tired of living in this house, this way,” so he just started fixing it himself. Frankie showed off his DIY home improvements in the video below.
@frankiemannella Quick update on our Ft Myers Beach house that was damaged by Hurricane Ian last year. #mannellafamunfiltered #hurricaneian #fmbstrong #ftmyersbeach @Christine Mannella @olivemannella @izzy mannella • booktok @ellie @Dadosaur #CapCut ♬ Superman (It’s Not Easy) – Lakeside Revival
Hurricane Helene
It was the worst type of déjà vu when Hurricane Helene flooded the Mannella family home again in September 2024.
The family was vacationing in Yellowstone National Park for a much-needed respite when Hurricane Helene roared into their neighborhood in Florida. They were shocked that this was happening again.
From more than 2,400 miles away in Wyoming, they began documenting their journey in real time.
The Mannellas surveyed the footage of their home security camera and discovered that their living room, kitchen, and front yard were flooded—which Christine called “so depressing.”
Frankie didn’t expect that kind of damage but said they were sorry for those experiencing a worse situation.
“The good news is we didn’t fix everything yet because we are still fighting insurance. The bad news is we don’t have new insurance—we got rid of the insurance, because we’re fighting them,” Frankie says in the video below. “All that stuff is toast. At least we hadn’t fixed it all the way up yet.”
“We’re safe—that’s the main thing,” Christine adds.
@frankiemannella Update on our house on Ft Myers Beach. Hurricane Helene way more flooding than we expected. prayers for those experiencing much worse. @olivemannella @Christine Mannella @izzymannella✨ @ellie @Dadosaur #mannellafamunfiltered #fmbstrong #fmb #hurricanehelene ♬ My Heart Will Go On (Love Theme from “Titanic”) – Céline Dion
(OliveMannella/TikTok)
Heading home
On the plane home to Florida, Frankie and Olive were nervous but hopeful as they gave their first hurricane update.
They said one of the bridges to their house was closed and that they hoped there was electricity.
“It’s not good,” Frankie says.
“It’s crazy to me this has happened,” Olive says, “but we are trying to stay positive.”
@olivemannella frankie & I are headed out to see the house after #hurricanehelene thank you to everyone who has reached out ❤️ #mannellafamunfiltered #fortmyersbeach @Frankie Mannella ♬ original sound – olivemannella
Day 1 of cleanup
Once Frankie and Olive made it to Florida, they stopped by Target for cleaning supplies and a fridge in case theirs wasn’t working.
As they approached their home, they said it “smelled like dead fish” and then spotted a tipped-over porta-potty in their front yard that wasn’t theirs.
When they entered the flooded house, Frankie said it was worse than he thought.
“It smelled so bad that her head hurt,” Olive says.
Below, Olive shares a time-lapse video of their extensive cleanup efforts as they donned masks and gloves to scrub and sanitize surfaces until midnight.
@olivemannella today was crazy but we made it home after #hurricanehelene #damage #cleanup #fortmyersbeach #mannellafamunfiltered ♬ 28 – Zach Bryan
Day 2 of cleanup
Olive gets a little help from a friend as they continue wrangling the mess from Hurricane Helene.
She says it’s “really sweaty and really tiring” as they work seemingly nonstop mopping floors and filling trash bags.
“This is the saddest part,” Olive says, when they find her soaked childhood drawings from when she was a kid in 2002.
@olivemannella today felt so long but so much progress was made shoutout to @Lauren (weatherwithlauren) for helping us out today you’re so sweet!!! #hurricanehelene #fortmyersbeach #cleanup #damage #mannellafamunfiltered ♬ Clean (Taylor’s Version) – Taylor Swift
Day 3 of cleanup
Olive had a stomachache, so Frankie flew solo on cleanup efforts as he assessed drywall damage and attempted to salvage family photos that had been submerged.
@olivemannella literally laid in bed all day but @Frankie Mannella kept at it hopefully I’ll feel better tomorrow! #sickday #hurricanehelene #bestdadever #mannellafamunfiltered ♬ original sound – olivemannella
Later that night, Olive, unfortunately, ended up being admitted to the hospital for ischemic colitis (an injury of the large intestine). The hurricane recovery efforts are on hold for now—but the family will continue sharing her experiences on TikTok.
Costs of hurricane cleanup
Hurricane Helene’s total damage and economic loss will be between $225 billion and $250 billion, according to AccuWeather estimates.
But who will pay those astronomical costs? Hurricanes and wind damage are typically covered by homeowners insurance, while flooding is not.
Homeowners can buy separate flood insurance through the National Flood Insurance Program or private insurers.
However, in Asheville, NC (one of the areas hardest hit by Hurricane Helene), less than 1% of residents in the county carry flood insurance, according to Mark Friedlander, a spokesman for the Insurance Information Institute.
That means homeowners will bear the brunt of the sky-high costs to rebuild there, according to Sebastian Hov, CEO of 18 Insurance.
The individual costs that a family incurs after a hurricane can vary widely based on many factors—including the extent of the damage, the type of insurance coverage they have (if any), and their location.
These expenses can include house repairs, home renovations, insurance deductibles, temporary housing, debris removal, replacing damaged goods, and additional living expenses.
While some families might manage to recover with minimal costs due to insurance coverage, others, depending on their situation, could face substantial financial burdens.
