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AP FILE PHOTO
A car remains on a hydraulic lift in Punta Gorda, 14 days after Hurricane
Charley leveled the service station around it.
FILE PHOTO
The Spirit of Punta Gorda statue in Laishley Park is a permanent
monument honoring the peoples' determination to rebuild the city
after Hurricane Charley.
AP FILE PHOTO
Steve Davis removes salvageable items from an AutoZone store that was
completely devastated in Hurricane Charley in Port Charlotte.
The Turner Center, which was housing more than 1,200
evacuees as a storm shelter, lost its roof.
The eye of the storm crossed U.S. Highway 41 at
Harborview Road in Port Charlotte at about 4:42 p.m. The
five-mile-wide eye end – with vicious winds – returned at 4:51
p.m.
The expected 15 feet of storm surge never materialized,
but the winds did the damage.
Mobile home parks at Burnt Store Road and U.S. Highway
41 were reportedly flattened. Similar reports were made
along Kings Highway.
Along Edgewater Drive, the storm damaged nearly every
home and brought down nearly every power line.
Along U.S. Highway 41, little was recognizable, as dozens
of businesses had roof and storefront damage. Nearly 75%
of the signs directing people to stores were wiped away, most
notably Target and Books-A-Million.
Traffic signals and signs and downed trees were road
hazards into the night.
Hundreds of people were out on the road Friday night to
see how their neighbors fared.
Florida Gov. Jeb Bush visited the area Aug. 14 and esti-
mated the potential damage could reach $15 billion.
President George W. Bush signed a federal disaster decla-
ration before the worst of the damage had been done.
SUN FILE PHOTO
Category 4 Hurricane Charley destroyed six schools in Charlotte County,
including: the Baker Center, Peace River Elementary, Neil Armstrong
Elementary, East Elementary, Punta Gorda Middle and Charlotte High.
Several others were damaged.
