CLEARWATER, Fla. (WFLA) — Several Clearwater fire personnel and police officers lost everything during Hurricane Helene.

The city is doing what it can to help those who serve the community and is also putting together ways the community can give back.

Wood panels and boards are all that’s left on the inside of Patrick Brafford’s home.

“All in all, we’re good, because we are all in this together right now. It doesn’t matter which way you look, everybody is suffering,” Brafford said.

Brafford is with Clearwater Fire and Rescue’s Lifeguard Division and has been helping rescue people for 14 years. Now, his entire life is poured out onto his yard, telling a story.

“Some of my kid’s first toys, or our wedding champagne glasses, or some of the biggest milestones in our life, or just day-to-day things that we would come home to,” he said.

His story is one of many who have had their entire lives turned upside down, but with a lot of work already being done, there is hope.

“If you saw what this place looked like on day one when the sun came up, if you look around right now it looks bad, but it is amazing, and it gives you hope. It’s really an example of the human spirit,” he said.

According to Tiffany Makras, the Human Resources Director for Clearwater, so far they have 35 employees who have lost everything.

They are doing what they can to give back to the people who have dedicated their lives to helping others.

“We’re offering some vacation sell back and some leave bank that folks if they have availability, they will be able to sell it back for quick cash influx,” she said.

The city is also creating a system to let employees transfer their days off to their coworkers who need time to rebuild.

Many of those impacted city employees are firefighters and police officers.

“Going into this one, we could tell in the middle of the night that it’s going to be different. We’re seeing the impacts and the results of it, people who’ve lived here their whole lives are saying they’ve never seen devastation like this,” Makras said.

Brafford said help has been pouring in and it’s time to brush off the dirt and get to work.

“We’re going to get through this, we’ve got no choice,” stated the lifeguard manager. “I mean, I love it here, I’ve got family to provide for, this is where my kids were born, where I’ve raised my kids, where I married my wife, and we’ve poured everything we have into this home.”

The city said they are working on a fund for the community to be able to give back to their first responders. For updates, click here.

The Braffords also have a GoFundMe set up. To donate, click here.