I loved living in Florida. The natural disasters and constant flooding drove me out.

Homes in Bradenton, Florida. zimmytws/Getty Images

Lorraine English, 72, loved living in Florida, but hurricanes made life there difficult.

In 2025, she moved from Bradenton — a city along the Manatee River — to Asheville, North Carolina.

English says that with fewer natural disasters and lower housing costs, her quality of life has improved.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Lorraine English, a 72-year-old Floridian who moved to North Carolina in 2025. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

I lived in San Francisco for many years, but in 2000, I moved to Bradenton, Florida, a town between Sarasota and St. Petersburg. I lived there for more than 20 years, right along the Manatee River, which runs into the Gulf of Mexico.

Bradenton is a medium-sized town, but like a lot of places in Florida, it's been growing by leaps and bounds.…