Hurricane season runs from June through November in Florida, and DeBary sits in the low country along the St. Johns River where the water has somewhere to go, and it is often your street. By the time a storm has a name and a cone on the map, the gas stations are busy and the good parking is already taken. Protecting your car during a hurricane is almost entirely about what you do before the watch goes up. Here is how DeBary drivers can get ahead of it.
Key Takeaways
- Most of what protects your car happens before a storm is even named, not during the scramble.
- Know your evacuation zone now, because orders are issued by zone and the map is easy to check ahead of time.
- Fill the gas tank early; stations run dry and lose power as a storm approaches.
- Park on high ground, away from trees and power lines, and in a garage if you have one.
- Never drive through a flooded road; a foot of moving water can carry most cars away.
- If your car is flooded or crushed after the storm, do not start it, and get it towed and assessed.
When Should You Start Getting Your Car Ready?
Before a storm has a name. The worst time to think about your car is the day a hurricane watch goes up, when fuel, supplies, and safe parking are already disappearing. Early in the season, find out whether you live in an evacuation zone and which one, because Florida issues evacuation orders by zone. The Florida Division of Emergency Management urges every resident to know their zone in advance, noting that zones run from A, the most vulnerable and first to be told to leave, down to F. In DeBary, that also means knowing whether your home or usual parking sits in a low, flood-prone spot near the St. Johns River. Ten minutes with the zone map now saves you a frantic decision later.
Where Should You Park a Car to Ride Out a Hurricane?
On the highest, most sheltered ground you can reach. If you have a garage, use it, and if a nearby parking structure is open to residents, an upper level above the flood line beats a driveway. Outdoors, park away from large trees and old oaks, which drop limbs and whole trunks in high wind, and away from power lines and anything that can become a projectile. Avoid the low spots that puddle in an ordinary afternoon storm, because those are the first places to flood in a hurricane. Around DeBary, that means steering clear of the lowest streets near the river and the retention ponds. A car that rides out the storm on dry, open ground is far more likely to start afterward.
What Should You Do to the Car Itself Before the Storm?
Fuel it and prep it while you still can. Fill the gas tank early, because stations run dry and lose power as a storm nears, and a full tank also means you are ready to leave the moment an order comes. Charge your phone and keep a car charger in the vehicle, since power may be out for days afterward. Photograph the car inside and out for your insurance records before anything happens to it. Keep a basic emergency kit in the trunk, too; Ready.gov recommends items such as jumper cables, flares or a reflective triangle, a blanket, and water, which are exactly what you want if you end up stranded. Move the car to its storm spot before the wind picks up, not during it.
Should You Evacuate, and How Does Your Car Fit In?
If officials order your zone to leave, go, and leave early. Evacuations clog the roads fast, and a full tank plus an early start is the difference between a calm drive and hours in gridlock. Decide ahead of time where you are going and whether your vehicle can make the trip, because a car with a weak battery, bald tires, or a check-engine light is a gamble on a crowded evacuation route. If your vehicle cannot handle a long drive, or it does not run at all, arrange transport before the rush instead of after. Our long-distance towing can move a car out of the area on a flat rate when it is scheduled ahead, which is far easier a few days out than the night before landfall.
Why Should You Never Drive Through a Flooded Street?
Because moving water wins every time. The National Weather Service is blunt about it in its Turn Around, Don't Drown guidance: just six inches of fast-moving water can knock an adult off their feet, twelve inches can carry away most cars, and two feet can sweep away SUVs and trucks. More than half of all flood drownings happen in vehicles. A road under water may also be washed out beneath the surface, so you cannot judge it by looking. In and around DeBary, streets near the St. Johns and the low underpasses flood fast in a heavy storm. If you see water over the road, turn around, because a stalled car in floodwater becomes a tow at best and a total loss at worst.
What If Your Car Is Flooded or Stranded After the Storm?
Do not try to start it. If water reached the floorboards or higher, cranking the engine can pull water into it and turn a cleanable problem into a destroyed motor. Leave it off and have it towed to a shop that can assess the damage and tell you whether it is worth repairing or should be claimed. The same goes for a car with a tree or a limb across it, or one boxed in by debris and downed lines, which is a job for a flatbed and someone who can work around hazards, not a push by hand. Roads may be blocked for a while, so patience helps. When it is safe to move your vehicle, our emergency towing crew can get it out and on its way to being sorted.
Does Car Insurance Cover Hurricane Damage to Your Vehicle?
Usually only if you carry comprehensive coverage. Comprehensive, sometimes called "other than collision," is the part of an auto policy that generally covers flooding, wind, and a tree falling on the car, while basic liability does not and collision coverage is meant for crashes. The time to check whether you have it is before hurricane season, not after a storm, because you cannot add it once a named storm is approaching. If you do carry comprehensive, the photos you took earlier and a prompt claim make the process far smoother. Keep your policy number and your insurer's claims line somewhere you can reach them even with the power out, such as saved on your phone and written on paper in the glovebox. Storm-damage claims also come with a deductible, so for minor damage it is worth weighing the repair against it before filing. And a car that floods above the dashboard is often declared a total loss, which is one more reason moving it to high ground beforehand is worth the effort.
The Day Before the Storm Does the Work
The cars that come through a hurricane in one piece usually belong to owners who decided early: they knew their zone, filled up before the lines formed, and parked on high, open ground well ahead of the wind. During the storm itself, the only rule that matters on the road is the simplest one, which is to never drive into water when you cannot see the bottom. If a storm is bearing down on Volusia County and you need a car moved to safety ahead of time, or recovered once it has passed, DeBary Towing handles scheduled transport and emergency towing across the area.