This year’s hurricane season is set to be one of the most violent in history, and recent news of a house collapsing in North Carolina due to waves from Hurricane Ernesto paints a frightening picture of what these storms can do.

With three months to go before hurricane season ends in November, we’re facing more storms, and many are wondering: What’s it like to own a home in a hurricane zone — or, worse, to be in your home when a massive storm hits?

Kory Covaci has experienced many hurricanes in her 38 years as a native Floridian, and her military background helps her feel prepared and calm even in the so-called “eye of the storm.”

But Hurricane Ian in September 2022 was different.

At the time, Covaci and her family were living on Pine Island, Florida – one of the barrier islands hit hard by the Category 4 storm, which became the world’s third costliest weather disaster. Covaci was also a young mother who had to flee her home with her baby in the middle of the storm to get to safety.

“Nothing could compare to the strength of Hurricane Ian – and the fact that I was now a mother,” says Covaci. “I had an 11-month-old child at the time. It was my first child and the first time I experienced a hurricane where I had to think about someone other than myself.”

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, more than 60 million people live in hurricane-prone areas. And with more people moving to these high-risk areas every day, many have no idea what it’s like to experience a hurricane. Here’s a quick glimpse into what Covaci experienced during Hurricane Ian and the aftermath.

Before the storm

Covaci and her husband chose to stay on Pine Island with their toddler and three dogs during the hurricane. While evacuation is advisable for those who are able to do so, there is a lot to coordinate and for many it is financially prohibitive.

“I’ve lived through Hurricane Irma, Charlie and many others,” explains Covaci. “I made our preparations and knew what we had to do. Fill the coolers with water, check the generator and put gas in the vehicles. This was nothing new to me.”

She had prepared her house well, with windows that were hurricane-proof, a generator to power the house, and an extensive hurricane kit. Her parents, sister, and brother-in-law lived near the more vulnerable coastal areas of Pine Island, so Covaci’s house was the safest option. So they all gathered at her place while they waited for Hurricane Ian to arrive.

When Ian arrived, winds were gusting at 150 mph (240 km/h). The storm surge caused the water level on Pine Island to rise by 7 to 9 feet (2.1 to 2.7 meters), unlike any other hurricane Covaci had ever experienced.

“The storm started and we were in the middle of it,” Covaci recalls. “I see the floodwaters rising. I was talking to my husband as I looked out the window at the boat ramp across from my house. I said, ‘If the water floods the street, we’re in trouble.’ That happened about 20 minutes later.”

If the water came any closer to their home, Covaci knew they would not be able to stay and would have to evacuate to higher ground in the middle of the storm. The reality of the situation hit Covaci when she grabbed the infant life jacket from her hurricane kit and strapped her baby in. Plan B was to move into a neighbor’s house built on stilts in case the storm surge got too high.

“Never in my life did I think I would have to resort to Plan B, and I had to resort to Plan B,” Covaci admits.

Carrying their family, baby and pets in crates, they waded through water that was above their knees. Covaci knew the dangers of crossing rainwater – the strong current often concealed large, sharp, fast-moving debris that could rip or tear their legs away, causing them to fall into the water.

Moving slowly and fearfully, Covaci and her family eventually reached their neighbor’s house, which was also a refuge for her daughter. Once inside, Covaci finally felt relief and tried to relax.

“I knew we would be safe because we were in an elevated area,” she says. “But then I started to worry about what would happen when I got home.”

After the storm

Hurricane Ian raged over Pine Island for about nine hours, bringing pounding rain, rising water levels and high winds. When the storm passed, Covaci returned home and was relieved that, miraculously, no water had entered her home. She was lucky. Her extended family was not so lucky.

“Our first priority was to get to my parents’ house and assess the damage,” says Covaci. “That’s when we realized there was no bridge – it was completely washed away. So we got my brother-in-law’s boat to take the boat there. When my parents returned from inspecting their house, they were completely devastated.”

Her parents’ house suffered major damage, including most of the furniture, cabinets and other belongings in the house being submerged in water up to one meter deep.

Covaci’s next priority was to make sure everyone had something to eat. Even though the electricity and gas were out, she was able to use her grill and cast iron skillet to prepare hot meals using the community’s fresh produce and meat.

“The cast iron skillet was fantastic because you could clean it without soap,” she recalls. “I just put it on the grill, boiled some water and it was ready to use again.”

“We had about five 5-gallon jugs of water and three different coolers filled with water,” she says. She was nervous about how long it would last.

“Within four days of the storm, the water was back and running for two hours,” she says. “We planned our lives around that two-hour window.”

The only thing she wished she had in her kit was a clothespin and a clothesline to dry clothes and other items that got damaged or wet during the storm.

Her parents bought a trailer and parked it on Covaci’s property for three weeks. When their house was deemed safe for renovation, they moved into their own driveway. Since an insurance reimbursement would have taken much longer than they wanted to wait, the Covaci family repaired everything themselves. They obtained the necessary permits and with the help of friends and family on the island, they rebuilt the interior of the house.

Covaci and her husband also had to repair their house, which became an ordeal in itself.

“I went to the insurance company, which was a nightmare,” she admits. “Before I could replace the roof, I had to go through a verification process with the bank, so it took a long time. But even then, we didn’t get the total amount we expected because they depreciated the value of the roof according to its lifespan. Luckily, I subsidized it with the Coast Guard grant, so my roof was fully funded.”

Covaci stressed the need to be cautious with out-of-town construction companies that flock to the area after a storm. Although extortionate prices are illegal, many companies do it anyway.

Shortly before Ian, Covaci had obtained estimates for replacing her roof valued at $15,000 to $17,000.

“After the storm, one of the quotes from a storm repair company was over $50,000,” Covaci says.

Although Hurricane Ian was terrible and exhausting, she was glad they stayed on the island. She thought it was the only way to rebuild her life.

“FEMA is on the ground helping you, but they are not in your home doing the work,” she explains. “The contractors are so booked up because so many homes are destroyed that they may not be able to get to you for months. The rebuilding is largely in your hands and in the hands of your family.”

One thing Covaci learned from this experience is that preparing for a hurricane early can make all the difference. For those left behind, having a plan in advance is crucial. If you live in a flood-risk area, find a nearby neighbor’s house that you’re welcome to stay at to wait out the storm if water levels get too high.

She is also grateful that she did a lot of renovations in advance to protect her home from a hurricane.

“We installed impact-resistant windows in 2017, so we didn’t have to worry about boarding up our doors or windows,” she says. She also remembers how grateful she was to have installed a generator hookup in the house the year before, so she could run her refrigerator during the day and the air conditioner at night.

“It cost $550 to install in 2023,” she says. “After experiencing Hurricane Ian, I would have paid $5,000, that’s how useful it was.”

Another lesson Covaci learned that may surprise many is that the strength of a hurricane does not correlate with the damage or risk of flooding. Storm surge can occur at any time and remains the greatest threat during a hurricane.

“What I would change next time is to communicate my Plan B better in advance with the family and everyone involved,” says Covaci.