The Floridian's guide to hurricane-season rituals

Every region has its seasonal customs. New England has leaf peeping. The Midwest has the first snow tire swap. Florida has hurricane season, which lasts six months and comes with a set of rituals so familiar that long-time residents perform them almost without thinking.

Some of them are genuinely useful. Some are tradition more than protection. Here is a fond look at both.

The cone and the debate

It begins with a forecast map and a shape that looks like a slice of pie. Within an hour, half the people you know have an opinion about where the storm is really going, usually based on a cousin in Tampa and a strong feeling.

The cone is a forecast for one point only: the eye, and the range of tracks it might take over the next few days. It says nothing about how wide the storm is. Damaging wind and heavy rain regularly reach well outside it, so being just beyond the edge is not the same as being clear.

The grocery run

Bread, water, batteries, and for reasons nobody has fully explained, a surprising quantity of snacks. By the second day of a watch, the water aisle is bare and the store is selling single bottles at the register.

This one helps, with one change: do it in June. A storm kit bought during a calm week costs less, involves no lines and still has the good flashlights in stock. Water, nonperishable food for several days, a manual can opener, prescriptions, a first aid kit and a battery-powered radio cover most of it.

The window tape

Generations of Floridians have taped big X shapes across their windows, and the habit refuses to die. It does not stop glass from breaking. It can make the pieces larger when it does. Shutters or impact-rated windows are what protect openings, and they can also reduce the wind portion of a homeowners premium once documented by a wind mitigation inspection.

The shutter standoff

Every street has one house that puts its shutters up the moment a storm earns a name, and one that never puts them up at all. Then there is the neighbor whose accordion shutters have not moved since they were installed and may not move now.

The useful version of this ritual is a dry run before the season. Make sure panels are labeled, hardware is where you think it is, and tracks are not rusted shut.

The yard sweep

Patio chairs, potted plants, the grill, the kids' basketball hoop. Anything that can become airborne usually ends up in the garage or the pool, which is a time-honored Florida storage method. Loose items in a strong wind cause a remarkable share of avoidable damage, to your house and to the one next door.

The paperwork nobody enjoys

This is the least exciting ritual and the most valuable. Know where your policy is, ideally a digital copy saved somewhere other than the house. Know your hurricane deductible, which in Florida is usually a percentage of your dwelling limit rather than a flat amount. And know that flood is a separate policy with a waiting period, which is why it belongs on the June list rather than the watch-day list.

The cleanup that follows

Then the storm passes, and the other Florida ritual begins: neighbors helping neighbors clear branches, sharing generators and checking on the older couple down the street. It is the best of the season, and it never makes the forecast.

How K2 fits in

K2 Insurance is an independent agency in Delray Beach. If hurricane season has you wondering what your policy would actually do, or what that deductible means in dollars, let us walk through it with you. You can also browse what we cover.

This article is general information, not insurance or legal advice. What is actually covered depends on the terms of your individual policy. Speak with a licensed agent about your specific situation.