Story highlights Monroe County officials began letting residents head back to the lower Keys and Key West at 7:30 a.m. Sunday

One evacuee was told, "It's a horrible scene. It's worse than pictures can show"

Florida City, Florida (CNN) Residents of the Lower Florida Keys were finally allowed to return home Sunday morning, more than a week after they were forced to flee the wrath of Hurricane Irma.

Many have been waiting for local officials to tell them it was safe to come back.

Some have no idea what they're coming back to -- for all they know, their home and belongings are gone.

Elvira Vega told CNN her family's home on Marathon Key was "done" and she was nervous about returning. Her brother had stayed behind to ride out the storm and had sent Vega pictures of what was left of her family's house.

"My brother definitely said, 'Do not come home,'" she told CNN. "My sister got a phone call from her friend and said, 'If you don't need to, don't come home. It's a horrible scene,' they said. It's worse than pictures can show."

Elvira Vega's car near a checkpoint heading south into the Keys. Her brother sent her a photo of her destroyed home.

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