CLEARWATER, Florida — The patio at Jimmy's Fish House and Iguana Bar in Clearwater Beach, Florida, sits right on the Gulf, offering an ideal view of the sunset each night.
“We will be enjoying our evenings out here again," said Christine Bottger, who has worked with Jimmy's for 17 years.
On Thursday, Sept. 26, before Hurricane Helene hit, it was business as usual at the restaurant. Owner Jeff Keierleber said they were even serving dinner inside.
“Thinking this was going to be a big bag of nothing," Keierleber said. "It was not a big bag of nothing. It was a huge bag of something.”
What happened next was catastrophic, Keierleber said.
“I was trying to get to the kitchen," Keierleber said. "Couldn’t do it from here. It knocked all the windows out. All the doors out here.”
“Our booths that were once inside are sitting out here," Bottger said.
Bottger said she was born and raised in Florida.
“And I have never seen this, never," Bottger said.
“We were literally climbing over two-and-a-half feet of sand and pavers and all the other equipment that was here and tables that were thrown around," Keierleber said.
Kate Coggin is a bartender at Jimmy's. She was one of the first people to show up Friday morning.
“I was crying," Coggin said. "I was shocked. I’m like, 'this is my home.'"
She took a video of what she saw and posted it to TikTok. So far, it has racked up more than 3.5 million views.
“People not only lost their jobs, but their homes," Coggin said. "It’s terrible. It’s terrible."
“It made me cry," Bottger said. "Shed a lot of tears.”
Thankfully, none of the staff at Jimmy's were hurt, including one of its most beloved customers, a bird named George.
“Everybody loves our George," Bottger said. "He’s huge.”
Jimmy's is known by many for its good food, good drinks, good music and traditions.
“We are known for our sunset celebrations here," Bottger said.
All guests 21+ toast with tequila when the sun goes down over the Gulf.
"We are determined to get back to that point, and we will," Bottger said.
“I can’t wait to give you an ice cold beer and a hug," Coggin said.
So far, Keierleber said there is no set timeline on when Jimmy's may reopen.
“It doesn’t look like much now, but this is looking a heck of a lot better than it looked Friday morning," Keierleber said. "If we keep doing this, we’ll be somewhere soon.”