The worst of Hurricane Milton had already crossed the Tampa Bay area when 48-year-old David Fletcher heard an eerie gurgling noise outside his door.

Fletcher thought he would be safe at The Standard at 2690 Apartments in Clearwater. The 16-acre complex of squat, two-story walk-up buildings northwest of the Bayside Bridge was outside Pinellas County’s mandatory evacuation zone, the building’s property manager wrote to residents Tuesday.

Fletcher rode out the worst of the storm in his faded Jeep Grand Cherokee parked outside his home, ready for a last-minute evacuation. He went back inside around 9 p.m., thinking the worst was over. He was lucky he made it through the storm unscathed – the only water in the parking lot was an inch-deep puddle.

Five hours later, the complex was flooded with neck-high water in places, resulting in what Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri called “the most significant water rescue” in the county’s history. It took local officials more than eight hours to evacuate more than 540 residents from their flooded homes. Residents sought shelter on their second-story neighbors’ balconies and became trapped as the water swelled.

“I was sure, and I’m glad I was wrong, that there would be some casualties,” Gualtieri said at a news conference Thursday morning.

Water rushes in

At 2 a.m., Fletcher was awakened by the sound of sloshing water. Confused, he checked his bathtub and toilet by the light of his phone. Both seemed fine.

Sometime in the early evening his unit lost power, so he made his way through the darkness to the door. When he opened it, waist-high water rushed in.

On the street he could see the water rising rapidly. How was this possible, he wondered? The sky was clear, the wind had long since died down and it hadn’t rained for hours.

As he waded through the rushing surf, he noticed the unmistakable tingle of the stagnant pond water.

The water line reached his legs, tables and chairs were already rocking in the water. He gave himself five minutes to collect his computer, phone, and birth certificate before running back to his Jeep, now up to its tires in the swirling darkness.

In some ways, Fletcher was lucky. He lives on the highest floor near the entrance to the complex. He managed to evacuate on foot, but his car was spared.

Precipitation flooding, not flooding

It is not uncommon for The Standard to flood during a storm. The rear of the complex, which abuts a retention pond, was under nearly two feet of water after Hurricane Helene, Fletcher said.

“We know this location very well,” said David Kadau, training and special operations director for Clearwater Fire and Rescue. The highest point of The Standard is about 10 feet below the Best Buy across the street. There is a steep descent from the street to the front parking lot of the complex.

Evacuation zones are being established due to the risk of storm surge, but the flooding of homes was caused by rainfall, according to district spokesman David Connor. The units were built in the 1970s, possibly before flood maps were created for the area.

The type of urban flooding that occurred Thursday at The Standard was among the most difficult rescue missions for first responders, Kadau said. When they arrived shortly after 5:30 a.m. Thursday, the complex was pitch black, he said. There were branches and downed power lines littering the road. From the darkness they could only hear cries for help.

Trapped by rising water

Isiah Archer struggled to control his nerves as he watched the water reach the front door of the first-floor units in his apartment building.

He had gotten used to the occasional flooding in the neighborhood, but this time the water came faster than ever before.

Earlier in the day, Archer, 26, watched neighbors lay out sandbags. Nobody seemed particularly worried. After all, they weren’t told to leave.

Now those sandbags were submerged under four feet of water. The heartbreaking realization set in: He, his mother and their Yorkshire terrier, Diogi, couldn’t fake the flood. They were trapped.

It wasn’t long before Archer heard an evacuation boat approaching his balcony. The rescuers pulled up and told them to get in. They had a dog and some emergency luggage to take care of, Archer told them. Could they turn around again in a few minutes?

The family rushed to get the essentials. The sun still hadn’t risen.

Five minutes passed when rescuers said it was time to get in. With bags and the terrier in hand, mother and son were brought to safety.

Reconsider where you live

In an email Thursday morning, property managers told tenants they would need to evacuate for 24 to 48 hours. But Fletcher is skeptical that his ground floor apartment will be livable again so soon.

Meanwhile, Fletcher, an elevator mechanic, has to pay for a hotel. He’s already missed work because of Helene and doesn’t know when he’ll get his next paycheck.

Fletcher moved to Tampa Bay from Georgia four years ago. Now he is rethinking his decision.

“I just want to keep going, but I can’t. “You have to rethink where you live,” he said.

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