Page 44 - Panama City Living May/June 2019

Not-for-sale signs stick out of the rubble. The City Pier has vanished, swept away by the forceful water and winds of Hurricane Michael.
Though it was left a shadow of its former self, Mexico Beach offers visible signs of revival and regrowth. Construction workers and contractors are everywhere. The aroma of food sizzling on grills drifts down the streets; some restaurant owners quickly adapted to the challenges. Of the 13 food establishments in town, four— Mango Marley’s, Crazy Beach Pizza, Rustic Sands Tiki Grill, and Caribbean Coffee—are open as of early March 2019. The owners of Mango Marley’s were among the first to resume business, serving food from a trailer and setting up a tent for guests. Other restaurants continue reconstruction.
Mexico Beach’s mayor, Al Cathey, owned and operated the local ACE Hardware store for 45 years until his youngest son Lee bought it in 2016. It is one of the few businesses that reopened within a few weeks after the storm despite losing 75 percent of its inventory.
After months of cleanup and salvaging his son’s business added to weeks of planning and standing strong for his community, the mayor remains personable, kind, and optimistic. The magnitude of the storm’s aftermath is something he has never before experienced, he explains. “We were in the mandatory evacuation zone,” he recounts. “The police went down every street with a bullhorn. Anyone that said they were not leaving, they would take their names and their phone numbers, making a list. On Wednesday night, when the storm escalated, many of those people left, but we didn't know that. We found out after the fact that it ended up being around 100, maybe 125, people that actually stayed through the storm.”
Mayor Cathey, his wife Carol, and their son Lee were among
44 • May–June 2019 • www.PanamaCityLiving.com
those who remained in the city, committing themselves to riding out the storm in their home near the east end of town. Lee’s wife had evacuated to her hometown in Georgia with their son.
When the house began to shake around them, the family prayed. “The first thought I had—and I didn't say it to Carol or Lee—but it was if we had made the right decision,” Mayor Cathey says.
During the rough parts of the storm the family felt safest in the interior bathrooms, speaking little about their fears and finding comfort in prayer. Three hours after the storm passed, the family experienced a real sense of a release of tension. Mayor Cathey, who had lived in Mexico Beach nearly his entire life, looks weary when thinking back to the moment when the full impact of the storm’s wrath became clear.
“On Thursday morning, I’ll be honest—I didn’t know what to do,” he admits. “Walking down that highway, so many things ran through my mind. I’m used to dealing with somebody not getting their trash picked up, or someone telling me that their water bill’s not right, and they need my help to figure out what’s going on. Now, all of a sudden, people’s lives, memories, physical possessions,
The Mexico Beach water tower was built and became operational in 1953. It was located between 19th and 22nd streets. The tower suffered a fatal blow during the storm. The city is hoping to be able to save the City logo from the tower and place it in a prominent area at a later date. Photo loaned by Charles Parker