By Mark Curnutte
Enquirer staff writer

Don Molloy, 69, of Montgomery nails the chimney cap back up at his duplex in DeSoto County, Fla. He and his wife, Joyce, arrived Wednesday to inspect damage caused by Hurricane Charley. The Enquirer/MARK CURNUTTE

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. - Don and Joyce Molloy of Montgomery cut short a trip West to double back and check on hurricane damage to their Gulf Coast duplex.

But before stopping at their own house Wednesday morning, they went to the home of another local couple - Jim and Marlene Arthur of Loveland - who own property in the same neighborhood.

The Arthurs had suffered more severe damage, an open hole in their roof above the dining room and a broken truss. Thunderstorms Sunday had drenched the carpet. Don Molloy, a semi-retired roofer, wanted to see if he could help.

As soon as the Molloys pulled up, a Cincinnati-flavored reunion took shape. From across the street came Don and Ro Murphy, who had moved permanently last year from Mount Airy. Chuck and Orma Burificato, who had moved from Landen, walked over from down the block.

The Arthurs had hired a contractor to seal the hole with sheets of roofing felt.

HURRICANE UPDATES

Death toll: 22 people in Florida. Electricity: More than 400,000 people remained without power Wednesday. Elderly: The state has processed more than 250 people through a temporary shelter for older people at Robarts Arena at the Sarasota County Fairgrounds. They came from nursing homes, assisted-living facilities and private homes in the affected counties. Sanibel: The exclusive island city was reopened to permanent residents Wednesday for the first time since it was evacuated before the hurricane. Roads had been cleared of debris, but there was no power or drinkable water on the barrier island of about 6,000 residents. Aid: Gov. Jeb Bush announced the creation of a disaster relief fund to help victims. He said it has received $1.1 million in donations so far. Damage: Insurers are likely to pay an estimated $7.4 billion in claims for damage to homes, businesses and personal possessions such as cars, Insurance Information Institute chief economist Bob Hartwig said Wednesday. Charley will likely go down as the second-most-expensive U.S. hurricane after Andrew, which caused $15.5 billion in insured losses, he said. The Associated Press

"We all thought we were living in paradise, huh?" said Marlene Arthur, gesturing toward her ceiling before glancing out her back window at the 12th tee of the Kingsway Country Club.

Uprooted trees and concrete roof tiles and other debris littered the course. The clubhouse was totaled.

When Hurricane Charley moved into Charlotte Harbor and up the Peace River on Friday afternoon, it spawned several tornadoes. The couples speculated that the hit-or-miss seriousness of damage to homes suggested that a tornado had cut a narrow swath through the neighborhood.

Next door to the Arthurs, a retired couple had lost the entire roof above their kitchen. Next door to the Molloys, an elderly widow had several holes in her roof.

But this neighborhood, on the whole, did not suffer widespread damage. Unlike the dozens of vulnerable trailer parks in the Port Charlotte-Punta Gorda area, the Molloys' and Arthurs' neighborhood is full of houses made with concrete block and stucco. The concrete-tile roofs were the biggest problem.

The Molloys, on first inspection, got off lightly. They walked quietly into their home, still not sure of what they would find. Don raised the metal storm screens on the porch to let in light. He walked around the house and looked at the ceiling for water stains. He found some in the living room, beneath where the chimney cap had been before it was blown off and landed in the side yard.

Don Molloy came prepared. He and his wife were in Colorado Friday, driving their RV, when they learned their home had been damaged by the hurricane. They turned around and stopped in Texas to buy roofing supplies.

"We got stuck in a hail storm," he said. "It hasn't been a good week, but it's just stuff."

He hoisted the metal chimney cap up a ladder and lifted it into place, securing it with nails. Then he walked the roof. He, too, found a big hole above the foyer.

"A heavy projectile," he called down, "probably a roof tile that came flying through the air. I'm glad I found this. It would have flooded the house."

He took a picture for the insurance company. Then he affixed a strip of felt over the hole.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the lake - on the shore is a sign that reads "Beware of alligators" - Jim and Marlene Arthur tried to dry their carpet with large fans. A yellow cord ran into the house from a generator sitting in the front yard.

Jim, 70, and Marlene, 61, left Loveland at 5 p.m. Saturday after hearing from the Murphys that their home had been damaged.

"It was a helpless feeling," she said. "Everybody said we wouldn't be able to get down there. We decided to go as far as we could."

They reached their Florida neighborhood at 3 p.m. Sunday.

Besides the hole in their roof, they found a palm tree had crashed into their screen porch.

They waited for their insurance adjuster Wednesday. Marlene kept herself busy by carrying buckets of broken roof tiles, two at a time, to the curb. Jim Arthur walked the neighborhood, helping people cut trees away from doors, windows and garages with a chainsaw.

Every half hour or so, they'd take a break and rest in the shade of the garage. They drank ice water.

"We love it down here. We love the golf course," Marlene said. "We have a great time with our friends from Cincinnati."

It's almost football season. The four couples spend Sunday afternoons at a nearby sports bar, where they eat chicken wings and watch Bengals games.

"But we're not as obnoxious as those Bears fans," Marlene said.

Humor was helpful on Day 5 after the hurricane. But sobriety is never far away.

"There are no words to describe what some people are going through," she said.

"Their lives, everything they have, are just scattered to the wind. We were very fortunate."

E-mail mcurnutte@enquirer.com