Pinellas County officials say cleanup and recovery efforts will continue to take time in areas hit hard by Hurricane Helene.

The storm surge from Hurricane Helene has upended life in the cottages. “Things are all shifted, wet, muddy, slippery,” Blease said. For Behermann, the cottages are everything. Now the task ahead to recovery is nearly overwhelming and just knowing where to start is difficult.

The bridges to Pinellas County's barrier islands are set to reopen, Tuesday afternoon. "We're trying to get people back out here as quickly as we can," Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said.

The Barrier Islands in Pinellas County reopened Tuesday afternoon, but residents, business owners, and county officials encourage people not to go out there unless they need to or are volunteering to help clean up.