ORANGE CITY, Fla. — While some gather leftover debris and tree branches after Hurricane Milton, others, like Mark Abbot, are figuring out their insurance claims.

Abbott worries he may be picking up the pieces for months after a tree fell through his home on South Sparkman Avenue.

“The tree on the back corner came down through the house, and it had three major branches that crashed through here,” he said.

Now, both his living room and kitchen are uninhabitable and filled with debris from the ceiling.

Despite having lived in his Sparkman Avenue home for the past eight years, Abbott said this type of damage was a first for him.

“Most of my neighbors, nothing came down," he said. "I just happened to be unlucky on this one."

Abbot considers himself lucky, since neither he nor his 17-year-old daughter suffered a scratch from the fall.

On Saturday morning, he contacted a tree removal business to help him get rid of the branches sticking out of his roof and pile them up on his street to be picked up.

Abbott said he paid $2,000 for the tree removal, which he hopes will be reimbursed by his insurance company soon.

As he waits to hear back on his claim, he says he would have done things differently if he could.

“That tree was in question," Abbott said. "I would have cut it down if I had more money."

But he says he didn’t do so because the tree was on his neighbor’s property.

According to Florida law, the homeowner whose property the tree falls onto is responsible for cleanup, regardless of the tree’s origin.

In the meantime, Abbott said he is trying to determine if he’s eligible for additional living expenses coverage through his homeowner’s policy, which could cover the costs of temporary rental fees for him and his daughter. 

“Because where I’m at, it’s not ideal," he said. "My daughter went back to school today. So, I’d like to get her stable."

Until then, Abbott said he is working through the adversity.

“Yeah, you know, it’s making lemonade,” he said.