Know if your home in flood zone

Hurricane Helene is taking aim at Florida, with experts predicting it could rapidly intensify into a major hurricane before making landfall Thursday.

Life-threatening storm surge and flooding rains are among the many impacts predicted along Florida’s Gulf Coast.

“There is a danger of life-threatening storm surge for Apalachee Bay. Storm surge may begin to arrive as early as late Wednesday night ahead of the winds,” the National Weather Service Tallahassee said.

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“This forecast, if realized, is a nightmare surge scenario for Apalachee Bay. Please, please, please take any evacuation orders seriously!”

And the storm surge threat isn’t limited to where landfall is expected in the Big Bend area — the entire Gulf Coast faces the threat.

But how do you know if you live in an evacuation zone and what’s the difference between Zone A and Zone F?

Here are answers to your questions.

Table of Contents

Radar images of Hurricane Helene

Hurricane Helene: What you need to know

What you should know if you live in Florida when it comes to hurricanes

Do you live in an evacuation zone?
Do you live in a low-lying, flood-prone area?
Do you live in a mobile home?
Do you live on the barrier island?

If you answered yes to any of those questions, officials may ask you to evacuate ahead of a storm.

Know your home. Generally, homes built after 2002 include features to make them more structurally sound during a hurricane. See more details in the Florida Building Code.

If you live in a home only accessible by bridge, be aware emergency officials generally close bridges to traffic after winds reach a certain speed.

Residents of mobile home communities are asked to evacuate their homes for safer locations based on the threat of an approaching hurricane.

How do you find out if you live in an evacuation zone?

The Florida Division of Emergency Management has a website to determine whether you live in an evacuation zone and what zone it is.

Go to the website and enter your address. If your home is in one of the colored areas, those are flood zones where you may be asked to evacuate by local officials.