PORT ORANGE, Fla — It was meant to be a fresh start for Austin Howells until disaster struck after he moved into what he thought was his dream home in Port Orange. Just three weeks later, Hurricane Milton hit.
"My entire house is flooded all the way through," said Howells. "So the water came in quick, and it came in hard."
His home was flooded by 10 inches. The night of the storm, this US Navy veteran and single dad woke up in the middle of the night to try to get his 6-year-old daughter and sister to higher ground.
"I had a makeshift bed on the dining room table for my son just so he could sleep," he added. "I came out to around the back side of the house to the front. This entire neighborhood was a river. I couldn't believe my eyes."
Howells gutted his home right after the storm, hoping to stop the spread of mold. All his furniture and drywall now sit on the side of the road.
The house now looks like a construction site. He said he never would have bought the home if he had known about the flood risk. It turns out this isn't the first time it's happened, and he claims the seller never told him.
"It was said that Hurricane Ian had no outside water intrusion to the home," said Howells. "It was said to me that, you know, look at how high up my house is from the street. You know the chances of it flooding are slim."
Howells closed on the home in mid-September. A few days after closing, he met with neighbors who showed him photos. His neighborhood was underwater after Hurricane Ian. He immediately purchased flood insurance, and Milton hit two weeks later.
He tried filing a claim, but it was denied.
"So flood insurance has a 30-day wait grace period before it goes into effect," he added.
Mark Friedlander with the Insurance Information Institute said there are some exceptions.
"If you have a mortgage and flood insurance is purchased, as part of the closing of the home, it becomes effective immediately as long as the premium has already been paid," said Friedlander.
However, this wouldn't apply to Howells. He is now looking for an attorney, but that, plus the cost of rebuilding, is a lot.
"I'm kind of having to take the reins of just starting the process myself and seeing where it goes," said Howells.
Howells neighbor started a GoFundMe, hoping to help him raise money to rebuild.
