Photos show some houses survived Hurricanes Helene and Milton while their neighbors crumbled. Homeowners can learn from them.

Morgan McFall-JohnsenOct 12, 2024, 04:52 IST

A house lies toppled off its stilts after the passage of Hurricane Milton, in Bradenton Beach on Anna Maria Island, Florida.AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell<ul class="summary-list"><li>Photos from <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/2024-atlantic-hurricane-season-not-over-storms-predictions-2024-10">Hurricanes Helene and Milton</a> show some homes standing despite destruction next door.</li><li>Garage doors, windows, and roofs can make or break a house being battered by powerful winds.</li></ul>Hurricanes Helene and Milton have carved <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/hurricane-milton-landfall-florida-housing-market-insurance-fema-2024-10">trails of devastation through the US Southeast</a>.But photos show some <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/maui-wildfires-lahaina-wooden-house-spared-among-rubble-2023-8">homes are still standing</a> in rubble-strewn neighborhoods, and there are lessons to learn from them.

Satellite images show areas where entire blocks appear flattened after Hurricanes Helene and Milton — except some houses still stand.

Keaton Beach is just a 30-minute drive south from where Hurricane Helene made landfall. Many homes in this area were destroyed.Google, Airbus/NOAA Remote Sensing Division

"It's not luck," Leslie Chapman-Henderson, the president and CEO of the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes, told Business Insider.

Many houses in Cedar Island were demolished from Hurricane Helene. Google, Airbus/NOAA Remote Sensing Division

The garage door can make a huge difference.

People pack up tools and last-minute items they want to salvage from the garage ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Milton.AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell

"If you're doing only one thing, do the garage door because that is your largest and weakest opening," Chapman-Henderson said.

Debris from damaged houses surround houses still standing after Hurricane Helene made landfall in Horseshoe Beach, Florida.CHANDAN KHANNA / AFP

While the garage door may be the largest opening in a house, the windows are the most numerous.

Houses lie in ruins after sustaining tornado and flood damage from Hurricane Milton.AP Photo/Marta Lavandier

Alongside openings like windows and doors, house-resilience experts talk about a home's connections — most critically, how its roof is connected to its walls.

The central home shown here is missing its roof after Hurricane Helene blew it away.Mandel NGAN / AFP

Lifting a house up on stilts can protect it from a storm's waters.

Hurricane Milton flooded this Florida neighborhood's streets.Associated Press

As hurricanes trend more destructive, it's even more important to protect your home.

The aftermath of Hurricane Helene in Horseshoe Beach, Florida.CHANDAN KHANNA/Getty Images

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