ST. PETE BEACH — Sean Green felt numb after waiting a week to return to this seaside tourist destination.
The weeks following hurricanes Helene and Milton were tough. Green, 32, spent sunrise to sunset alongside his coworkers shoveling debris, sand and sludge on the strip of restaurants by the water where he worked.
“It’s such a gray spot in my memory,” Green said. “We needed to keep people working.”
Green is a former manager at The Toasted Monkey, a heavily damaged waterfront bar and grill that is yet to reopen. Now, he works as a manager at Buoy’s Waterfront Bar and Grill, the restaurant next door.
“I was ready to get back to work,” he said.
Green, who is one of 2…
