Florida's final straw as despairing residents are ambushed by new crisis: 'The American dream is dead'

Parts of Florida could be facing a mass exodus in the coming months due to increasingly costly tropical storms pummeling the peninsula. Insurance costs have soared in Florida - with experts pinpointing Tampa, Sarasota, and Manatee counties as among the worst-hit areas Davida Wheeler, 47, told DailyMail.com she can no longer afford to live in her hometown of a decade, St Petersburg, after Hurricane Milton blew a power cable on to her rental home and it burned to the ground. 'The recent hurricanes have been a major disruption in existing or pending sales, even for unaffected homes,' Phil Crescenzo Jr., Vice President of the Southeast Division at Nation One Mortgage Corporation, told DailyMail.com Wheeler and her boyfriend Robert Stolorz lost their homes in Hurricane Milton and Hurricane Helene respectively, just a week apart, leaving them both homeless The Hurricane Milton fire also killed Wheeler's beloved cat, called Betty White 'I'm combing through the ashes of what remain of my entire life and all I have are cardboard boxes of donation,' Wheeler told DailyMail.com. For the time being, Wheeler and her Stolorz are staying in the home of a Good Samaritan in St Petes, Ro Barber In this aerial view, boats are piled up in front of homes after Hurricane Helene hit the area as it passed offshore on September 28, 2024 in Treasure Island, Florida Debris is seen in front of the Thunderbird Beach Resort in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton in Treasure Island, Florida, on October 11, 2024 For the time being, Wheeler and Stolorz are staying in the home of a Good Samaritan in St Petes, Ro Barber, while accepting donations on their GoFundMe page. In this aerial view, the roof of Tropicana Field is seen in tatters after Hurricane Milton destroyed it as the storm passed through the area on October 10, 2024, in St. Petersburg, Florida Debris is seen on a street in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton in Treasure Island, Florida, on October 11, 2024 Like many families in the area, Barber's parents moved over from New York, tempted by Florida's west coast beaches and zero income tax.