Water damage compounds by the hour, and New Orleans’ humidity accelerates every stage of it. What you do in the first day determines whether you’re looking at a drying job or a demolition job. Here’s the order of operations we recommend to every caller.
If water is still flowing, shut off the source first — the main water valve for plumbing failures, or the appliance supply line for a washing machine or water heater. If water is deep enough to reach outlets or the electrical panel, kill power to affected rooms from a dry location. Do not walk through standing water when the power may still be live.
Photograph and video everything before moving or discarding anything: the water line on walls, saturated furniture, the source of the loss. Your insurance claim lives or dies on this documentation. Then call for professional extraction. Shop vacuums and mops handle the surface inch; truck-mounted extractors pull water from carpet pad, subfloor, and wall bottoms that household tools can’t reach.
Don’t open windows to "air out" the house — New Orleans outdoor air is usually more humid than your wet walls, and open windows slow drying or reverse it. Don’t run your central AC thinking it will dehumidify a flooded structure; residential systems aren’t sized for that load. And don’t wait for an insurance adjuster before starting mitigation — your policy almost certainly requires you to prevent further damage.
Mold colonization begins within 24–48 hours in our climate. That’s the deadline that matters. A structure that gets extracted and placed under commercial dehumidification inside the first day usually dries in three to five days with finishes intact. The same structure left wet for a week usually loses drywall, insulation, and flooring — and gains a mold remediation scope on top.
