After searching the Emerald coast for two years we decided that Navarre Beach would be our hide-out. We were eager to escape our businesses in Maine in the winter and were especially enchanted by the beauty of the beach and gulf as well as like its low key laid back feeling.
We closed late in July in 2004. As we left the closing table my wife remarked that as long as we did not have a hurricane…”all would be great”. Unfortunately that wish was not to be fulfilled as 14 days later, (having never stayed a night in the property) we took a direct hit from hurricane Ivan.
As a Florida native, hurricanes were nothing to be feared and I remember countless “hurricane parties” as a young boy that were really great fun. However hurricane Ivan was a storm of historic proportions and that coupled with our direct Gulf front location created unimaginable destruction.
The repairs took a full 27 months. During the repair period with the building already in a damaged condition, two additional hurricanes hit Navarre adding to the destruction.
When I came to survey the damage, there was no access to the island as the bridge was unpassable. A FEMA ferry took owners to their properties. If you can image, the elevator where you enter at the parking lot was accessible only by use of a ladder as the hurricane had washed approximately 12 feet of “earth” into the sound…(including all water mains, sewers and other under ground infrastructure. The front foundation pilings of the building were in the Gulf. The beach was gone.
However we rebuilt better than before and never looked back, but regrettably know it will certainly happen again.