Hurricane Ian: Two Years Later

SWFL mental health organization continues post-Ian comeback

Storm aftermath has been costly for SalusCare and Lee County, both in actual dollars and strained community services.

By Mark Gordon
| 5:00 a.m. September 23, 2024
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The Crisis Stabilization Unit was closed for eight months.

Charlotte–Lee–Collier

The people who help other people in Southwest Florida in some of life’s most difficult situations — like mental health and substance abuse treatment — remain, to some extent, an internal crisis two years after Ian.

The organization, SalusCare, was founded in 2013 after the merger of Lee Mental Health Center and Southwest Florida Addiction Services. Its 46-bed Crisis Stabilization Unit, at 10140 Deer Run Farms Road, was flooded from the storm. Moisture rose two feet up the walls, say SalusCare officials. The facility temporarily closed after the storm.

In February 2023, SalusCare officials decided to rebuild the Deer Run Farms Road building. It opened up again in May 2023, after a $1.3 million project.