Rick Bass and Sara Weldon, who own the Our Simple Homestead hobby farm in Clermont, Florida, USA, shared some updates about their beloved animals. The couple went viral amid Hurricane Milton, opting out of evacuation to stay with their animals. In new TikTok videos, they showed the damage caused to their property and counted one fatality.
Highlights
- Rick and Sara stayed with their animals during Hurricane Milton, going viral.
- Their farm suffered damage but remarkably, only a rooster was lost.
- A new river formed on their land due to the hurricane's impact.
- They experienced a power outage and used Starlink for connectivity.
Taking to their TikTok page on Thursday (October 10) in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, Sara posted a series of videos sharing glimpses of her farm.
In the first clip, which has amassed nearly 2 million views, Sara gleefully declared: “The house is ok, all of us inside the house is ok.”
She then panned to the animals outside. The couple has 10 donkeys, nine Highland cows, four goats, over a hundred chickens, and six dogs. At first glance, all animals appeared to be “ok,” Sara revealed.
Hobby farmers Rick Bass and Sara Weldon shared some updates about their beloved animals
Image credits: oursimplehomestead
“We’ve got a new river going through the farm, that never existed before,” the hobby farmer noted as she filmed a long stream of water passing through her land.
Sara went on to show her “massive” cemetery tree which had fallen over. Fortunately, the tree didn’t damage her chicken coop, to the TikToker’s utter relief.
Brought to tears, Sara shared: “Everybody’s ok,” before reasserting that she had lost a lot of trees but that there had been no damage to the house.
Image credits: oursimplehomestead
Many people who had been keeping up with Rick and Sara’s story were moved by the update, as a TikTok user commented, “You were one of the first people I’ve checked on this morning.
“Thank god you, your farm and your babies are okay!!!”
The couple went viral amid Hurricane Milton, opting out of evacuation to stay with their animals
Image credits: oursimplehomestead
A person wrote: “I am crying. This makes me so extremely happy! Came round to check on you! Thank you, universe!”
Someone else penned: “So happy you are all ok. I’m crying watching this.”
In a second video, Sara shared more details about the impact of Hurricane Milton on her farm. “Needless to say it’s been a crazy 24 hours,” she admitted.
“We are currently without power, without phone service, we just got now the internet, thanks to Starlink.”
Sara then revealed that the storm had caused one fatality, explaining: “We lost one rooster. I think he had a heart attack, he was my favorite rooster.”
Despite being reassured that Milton hadn’t caused more damage to the farm, people sympathized with Sara’s loss, as a viewer wrote: “So deeply sorry about Mr rooster. May he rest easy.”
In new TikTok videos, they showed the damage caused to their property and counted one fatality
Image credits: oursimplehomestead
A separate individual chimed in: “I am soooo glad the animals are ok! except the sweet rooster. RIP. could have been so much worse. glad you're ok too!!! get some rest!”
On Thursday night, Sara shared a special update with Cash, her beloved donkey who had spent the night inside the house.
She revealed that during the storm, Cash had struggled with anxiety and didn’t want to be pet or settle down.
“You could tell he was just so out of sorts,” Sara said as she filmed Cash being gently stroked by her husband Rick. “But he knows tonight there’s no storm,” she concluded.
Rick and Sara gained the sympathy of millions of viewers across the world. On Wednesday (October 9), when Hurricane Milton hit Florida, they notably brought their donkey Cash, inside their home to protect him.
Before Hurricane Milton hit their area, Sara had told People on Wednesday: “I alternate between feeling calm and then crying over my animals.
“When I say goodnight to them tonight, I have no idea if I will see them again; that is an excruciating and heavy thought.”
Sara posted a series of videos sharing glimpses of her farm
Image credits: oursimplehomestead
In a previous video posted to TikTok, Sara announced: “We are in the direct path of where this hurricane is supposed to hit.
“We’re not evacuating. And please, don’t ask me to.” She tearfully added: “All these animals are our children.”
Sara reportedly said that she and her husband Rick have children who are adults and live elsewhere. However, their animals are like family.
Rick and Sara joined Joe Malinowski, AKA “Lieutenant Dan,” and “Kricketfelt” as breakout internet personalities who went viral amid Hurricane Milton.
Lieutenant Dan has been “thuggin out” Hurricane Milton—which previously reached as high as Category 5 —from his boat.
People have been increasingly worried about the man-turned-internet sensation, as Lieutenant Dan refused to evacuate Tampa Bay, Florida.
Lieutenant Dan went viral on social media in recent days, updating his thousands of followers from his boat, Sea Shell, while going against advice from officials for those in the path of Hurricane Milton.
The couple has 10 donkeys, nine Highland cows, four goats, over a hundred chickens, and six dogs
Meanwhile, a wealthy woman from Florida known by the TikTok handle “Kricketfelt” has gone viral on social media after sharing daily updates from her controversial Hurricane “Milton-proof” mansion.
Hurricane Milton marks the ninth hurricane of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to November 30, Al Jazeera reported on Wednesday.
On average, the Atlantic basin experiences about seven hurricanes each year, including three major hurricanes.
Image credits: oursimplehomestead
This is the second Category 5 hurricane of the season, following Hurricane Beryl, the first storm of the 2024 Atlantic season, as per Al Jazeera.
Fed by warm waters in the Gulf of Mexico, Hurricane Milton reportedly became the third-fastest intensifying storm on record in the Atlantic Ocean, surging from a tropical storm to a Category 5 hurricane in less than 24 hours.
NASA’s John F. Kennedy Space Center is currently assessing the damage after Milton swept through the state, authorities said in a statement.
Sara revealed that the storm had caused one fatality, explaining: “We lost one rooster"
Image credits:
The statement read: “Once the winds subsided to a safe level, the center’s Ride Out Team and engineering teams began initial checkouts to ensure bridges are safe and useable.
“Later, a larger assessment team will thoroughly check the entire center.”
The agency’s Europa Clipper launch team will schedule a launch date when personnel with NASA and SpaceX can perform assessments and determine it is safe to launch, officials said.
Meanwhile, American Red Cross teams are currently working to locate Florida residents who went missing after Milton slammed the state as a Category 3 hurricane, CNN reported on Thursday.
Hurricanes classified as Category 3 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale have winds exceeding 111 mph (179 km/h).
The Red Cross said Thursday it is working to support 83,000 people who took refuge in Florida evacuation shelters.
More than a dozen people have died in Milton’s path of destruction through Florida, CNN reported.
The state is anticipating more casualties, Governor Ron DeSantis has reportedly said, and first responders have rescued around 1,000 people as of Thursday night.
"So glad your whole family is safe," a reader commented
