Storm Surge Water Damage
Surge water pulled out of Panama City homes, then the wet materials sorted and the structure dried before anything is closed up.
Panama City and the Panhandle towns around it
Water in a Panama City home or shop? Call, then keep the power off
Storm water through a garage door, surge pushing up the lower walls, a line that split under the floor, or a drain that backed up into the bathroom. Phones are answered 24/7. A crew is sent as soon as one is free, and the scope and price are explained and approved on site before work starts.
- Phones answered 24/7
- Hurricane and storm surge water
- Scope explained before work starts
Get a fast quote
Fastest: call (833) 490-5225. Or send this and we call you back.
Today in Panama City
Local weather drives activity here: heat, humidity and rain change what shows up week to week.
Panama City & Bay County
Local water damage restoration you can reach by phone
Panama City Water Damage Restoration at a glance
Panama City Water Damage Restoration takes water damage calls for Panama City and the Gulf coast and inland towns on its service list, from Panama City Beach and Mexico Beach to Vernon and Chipley. Phones are answered 24/7. Water is shut off or made safe first, then pumped out, then the wet materials are sorted and the structure is dried against readings until it is dry.
Two things come before anything else. Turn off the power to any wet room at the breaker if you can reach it from a dry spot, and keep clear of standing water near outlets, cords and appliances. Then shut off the supply to the wet area if the water is coming from a line, and call.
The crew that comes is dispatched as fast as one is available, and it will explain the scope before any work starts. The first visit checks the source, the power and the wet materials, and the drying is planned from readings rather than from how the floor looks. Call (833) 490-5225 and say whether the water is still coming in and which room it is in.
- Service area
- Panama City and the Gulf coast towns listed in the service area, within about 60 km
- Hours
- Phones answered 24/7
- Not offered
- Plumbing, roof and electrical repairs go to licensed trades
Services
Water damage work for coastal homes, inland houses and the shops in between
Pick a service for symptoms, process and typical cost, or call and describe what you hear and see.
Hurricane Roof and Ceiling Leaks
Water that came through a storm-damaged roof, pulled out of the ceiling space and dried before the ceiling is closed.
Emergency Water Extraction
Pumping and vacuuming standing water out of floors, stairwells and lower rooms across Panama City, around the clock.
Surge Flood Cleanup in Coastal Towns
Cleanup for surge floods on the Gulf coast towns on this site's list, with the work planned around the storm record of 2018.
Structural Drying and Dehumidification
Air movers and dehumidifiers dry wet walls, subfloors and framing in Panama City, with readings logged until the structure is dry.
Mold After Water Damage
Mold after a flood or leak in Panama City is assessed and handled under Florida licensing, kept separate from the drying work.
Sewer Backup Cleanup
Sewage that came up through a drain or toilet is pumped out, the soaked materials removed and the room cleaned and dried.
Crawl Space and Subfloor Moisture
Water in a crawl space or under a floor is drained, measured and dried from below, so the subfloor is dry before it is closed.
Hidden Water Leak Detection
Moisture meters and readings locate water hidden behind walls, under floors and inside ceilings in Panama City buildings.
Ceiling Water Damage and Drywall
Sagging or stained ceiling drywall in Panama City is removed where wet, and the cavity above it dried before anything is closed.
Water Heater Leak Damage
Water from a leaking water heater pulled off the floor in Panama City, with the base of the unit and the lower wall dried first.
Appliance Leak Damage
Water from a leaking washer, dishwasher or refrigerator pulled off the floor in Panama City, with the cabinet bases dried in turn.
Burst Pipe Water Damage
A burst supply line in Panama City is shut off, the water removed and the floors, walls and framing dried in order.
Commercial Water Damage Restoration
Water damage restoration for shops, offices and ground-floor commercial space in Panama City, scoped on site before work starts.
Carpet and Floor Covering Removal
Wet carpet and pad in Panama City are checked for a remove-or-dry decision, and the subfloor is read before any floor covering goes back.
Contents and Furniture Removal
Furniture and household contents moved out of wet rooms in Panama City, photographed and listed before the drying starts.
Why homeowners call us
Why Panama City Water Damage Restoration
Answered in the middle of a storm
Calls are taken at any hour, including the night of a storm, when most of the damage happens. The operator asks the questions that set the first visit: the address, the room, the source and whether the power is off.
The power and the source come first
The crew confirms the electrical is safe before entering standing water, then finds the source before it starts pumping. Drying a building with a live source still feeding it wastes the time of everyone involved.
Dried against readings, not days
Each material is measured with a moisture meter and logged on every visit. The drying stops when the readings reach the target, which in humid Gulf coast air can take longer than a homeowner expects.
Surge is read from the tide line
On coastal calls the crew marks the tide line on the walls and framing first. That line sets how far the removal goes, and it is the record a claim file depends on.
The scope is written before the work
Materials to be removed, materials to be dried, the equipment and the trades that will be called are written down on site and explained before the work starts. Nothing is removed on a verbal promise.
Trades stay with the trades
Roof repairs, electrical work and plumbing repairs go to the trades that hold the relevant credentials. The crew removes the water and dries the building, and it tells you which repairs the job needs.
How it works
From phone call to fixed, in four steps
Make it safe, then call
Turn off the power to the wet room at the breaker if it is safe to reach, and shut off the supply if the water is from a line. Keep people and pets out of the water until the crew has confirmed the room is safe.
The crew checks the source and the wet area
The first visit finds where the water came in and how far it went. Readings are taken in the walls, the floor and the framing, so the wet area is mapped rather than estimated from the stain.
Standing water and wet materials come out
Water is pumped or extracted, and materials that cannot be dried, such as carpet pad, lower drywall or insulation that soaked up water, are removed and listed. The list goes into the scope you approve.
The building dries to the readings
Air movers and dehumidifiers are set for each room and cavity. The readings are logged on each visit, and the drying ends when the materials reach their dry target, with the final log shared with you.
What should you do in the first ten minutes of a leak in a Panama City home?
Stop the water at its source if you can, keep people and pets out of standing water near outlets and appliances, and move what you can lift off a wet floor. Then call. Do not run a household vacuum over standing water, and do not open a sagging ceiling yourself.
The shut-off is worth finding before you need it. In many homes the main valve sits where the supply line enters the building, often in a utility room, a garage or an outdoor box near the meter. Turn it clockwise until it stops, and leave it closed until the crew has seen the line.
Once the water is off, photograph the water line and the damage before anything is moved. Those photographs and the notes you make now are the start of the record the insurer will ask for.
- Stop the source: close the supply valve or the main if the water is coming from a line.
- Cut the power: turn off the breaker for any wet room if you can reach it safely.
- Keep clear: stay out of standing water near outlets, cords and gas appliances.
- Record it: photograph the damage, the water line and the contents first.
- Call: give the address, the room, the source and whether the water is still moving.
Why does storm water in Panama City keep spreading after the rain stops?
Water that came in through a door, a roof or a vent keeps moving through the framing and the insulation after the surface looks dry. Humid Gulf coast air slows the drying, so the wet zone can be larger than the visible damage.
Drywall and insulation draw water upward, and the wet zone often reaches well above the visible line. The lower wall, the subfloor and the cavity behind the baseboard hold moisture long after the floor has been mopped.
A crew measures the whole wet zone with a meter and does not stop at the first dry-looking reading. That is how a loss that looks small on the surface is found to reach the framing, and why the drying is planned from the readings.
- Water wicks upward through drywall, sometimes well above the visible line.
- Carpet pad holds water and keeps the subfloor damp underneath.
- Insulation in a wall or ceiling stays wet at the core after the surface dries.
- Crawl spaces and under-floor voids hold moisture from the soil for a long time.
- Humid air keeps readings high, so drying is measured, not timed.
Does a surge cleanup on the coast need a different approach?
Yes. Surge brings sand, silt and debris, and it pushes against the outside of the building as well as filling it. The cleanup starts from the outside, reads the tide line and removes the sediment before the drying begins.
A coastal surge leaves sediment in the cracks of the floor, the gaps under doors and the space under a raised home. That sediment holds moisture and does not come out with the water, so the crew removes what it can reach and records what remains.
The storm record on this coast, including Hurricane Michael's 2018 landfall near Mexico Beach, is the reference for planning the work. Each building is still measured on its own readings, and the tide line on that building is the boundary of the removal.
- Walk the outside first for damage that lets water back in.
- Mark the tide line on the walls before anything is removed.
- Remove sand and silt from floors, crawl spaces and cavities where they can be reached.
- Read the subfloor and the framing from both sides before closing anything.
- Write the outside damage into the scope for the repair trades.
What does a homeowner or a business owner need to write down?
Write down the time the water was found and stopped, the rooms affected, the source and each call and visit. Keep the photographs, the readings, the scope and the receipts together, because they are the basis of any claim.
A claim file is easier to follow when the sequence of events is clear. Note what you were told, by whom and when, and keep the notes written at the time rather than rebuilt later.
Ask the crew for copies of the readings and the scope at every visit. The records show what was damaged, what was done and when the building reached the dry target, which is the answer a claim depends on.
- Photographs of each wet room, the water line and the damage, before anything moves.
- A dated list of what was removed, kept and disposed of.
- Moisture readings from every visit, with the room and the material.
- Receipts for emergency work, temporary covers and equipment.
- The restoration scope and the final readings, kept together.
Service areas
Serving Panama City and all of Bay County
Panama City ZIP 32401
ZIP 32401
Panama City ZIP 32404
ZIP 32404
Panama City ZIP 32405
ZIP 32405
Panama City ZIP 32409
ZIP 32409
Panama City ZIP 32411
ZIP 32411
Lynn Haven
ZIP 32444
Panama City Beach
ZIP 32407, 32413
Youngstown
ZIP 32466
Mexico Beach
ZIP 32410
Fountain
ZIP 32438
Ebro
ZIP 32437
Rosemary Beach
ZIP 32461
Santa Rosa Beach
ZIP 32459
Freeport
ZIP 32439
Point Washington
ZIP 32454
Wewahitchka
ZIP 32449, 32465
Port Saint Joe
ZIP 32456, 32457
Vernon
ZIP 32462
Wausau
ZIP 32463
Chipley
ZIP 32428
Caryville
ZIP 32427
Alford
ZIP 32420
Panama City, FL · 60 km service radiusCall (833) 490-5225
Not on the list?
We also cover many smaller communities across Bay County. Check your ZIP.
Job stories
Typical jobs around Bay County
Storm water comes under a garage door into a Panama City home
- What homeowners notice
- After a heavy storm, water runs down the driveway and collects at the garage door. By morning the garage floor is under standing water, and the water has begun to creep under the wall plate toward the kitchen next door.
- What we do
- The power to the garage is confirmed off before anyone wades in. Submersible pumps take out the standing water, the carpet and pad in the kitchen are lifted, and the lower drywall on both sides of the shared wall is opened where the meter reads high. Air movers and dehumidifiers are set for the garage and the kitchen as two separate spaces, with the door between them kept closed.
- What to expect
- The scope lists each zone, the materials removed and the readings for each visit, and the homeowner has the log to check the drying against the target before the wall is closed.
Rain through a lifted shingle reaches a bedroom ceiling in Vernon
- What homeowners notice
- Wind-driven rain through a storm lifts a few shingles over the back of a house. A brown ring appears on a bedroom ceiling, and then a bulge that grows through the morning.
- What we do
- The bulge is drained through a small opening at its lowest point and the sagging board is removed back to sound framing. The attic is read from a safe access point, and the wet insulation above the room is pulled out. The roofer is given a note of the opening so the covering is repaired by a licensed roofing trade.
- What to expect
- The framing is dried in the cavity and the ceiling is closed only after the readings reach the dry target on a later visit.
A supply line leaks under a slab and shows at the kitchen floor edge
- What homeowners notice
- The kitchen floor by the back wall is warm and soft, and the baseboard there has started to lift. The water bill has risen over several weeks without any change in use.
- What we do
- The crew reads the floor and the wall with a moisture meter, traces the wet path along the probable line, and marks the place where the readings are highest. A plumber reaches the leak through a small opening in the floor edge and repairs it. The crew then dries the slab edge and the framing above it.
- What to expect
- The leak is found without lifting the whole kitchen floor, and the drying is measured against the readings from before the repair.
Need water damage restoration today?
Call any hour and explain what is going on. You get a clear price before any work starts.
Guides
Answers before you call
What moves the cost of water damage restoration in Panama City
No honest price list exists for water damage work in Panama City, because the same loss can cost very different amounts depending on the water, the time it sat, the materials it reached and the access.
Hurricane Michael in 2018: the landfall and surge record on the Panhandle
Hurricane Michael made landfall as a Category 5 hurricane on October 10, 2018, near Mexico Beach and Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida.
The first hours after surge water recedes from a Panama City home
When surge water leaves a home, the first hours decide how much is saved.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Will someone come out at night, on a holiday or during a storm?
Phones are answered 24 hours a day, every day. A crew is sent as soon as one is free, and the crew decides when it can safely go out in a storm. The first step while you wait is to cut the power to the wet area and stop the source.
Do you give a price on the phone?
No. A figure given before anyone has seen the water would be a guess. The scope and the price are explained and approved on site before any work starts, and the factors that move the price are set out on the pricing page.
How long does drying take?
It runs until the readings reach the dry target for each material, not for a fixed number of days. Humid Gulf coast air can make the last stage slower, and the crew shows you the readings so you can see the progress.
Will the insurance pay for the work?
That depends on the policy and the cause of the water. A standard homeowner policy generally treats flood differently from sudden water damage. The crew can give you a written scope and photographs for the claim, but it cannot promise how the claim will be decided.
Do you repair roofs, wiring and pipes?
No. Roof, electrical and plumbing repairs go to the trades that hold the relevant credentials. The crew removes the water, dries the building and writes down the repairs the job needs, so the right trade can be called.
Can I stay in the house while it is being dried?
Often yes, in the parts of the house that are dry and safe. The crew decides on the visit which rooms can be used and which must stay closed while the equipment runs.