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LocalNet360- June 1 will be the beginning of our 2011 hurricane season that continues until the end of November. The plethora of published articles primarily focuses on how to prepare your property for an upcoming storm and also what to do during a storm. There are fewer articles about what to do following a storm and they primarily discuss cautions and instructions about how to enter your house protecting yourself from bodily injury and ensuring safety. But there are almost no articles about what the homeowner or business owner can do to prevent wholesale loss due to water and wind damage following a storm. This article highlights what the homeowner or business owner can do following a loss to prevent further significant property loss.
Mold In Your Home or Business-How to prevent damage following a Hurricane?
June 1 is here and media are covering information about what to do if you are a victim of a hurricane, tornado, or major storm.
There are several myths surrounding hurricanes. Several of major myths are:
?Myth #1: Hurricanes are largely concentrated on states bordering the Gulf of Mexico-Florida, Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi; although not directly on the Gulf of Mexico, Alabama and Georgia are also included. Hurricanes have a considerably broader reach than the ?Gulf? states as well as the entire East Coast from North and South Carolina to New York and north are recipients? of water and wind damaged homes and businesses every single hurricane season.
?Myth #2: If I suffer from a hurricane loss, it will likely be devastating requiring complete rebuilding of the residence or business. While damage from a major storm surge may be severe, most property will suffer loss similar to a severe storm resulting in wind and water damaged properties.
?Myth #3: All of the damage occurs because of this from the hurricane. Far more damage can result, not from a hurricane, but from winds and water intrusion into the damaged structure following the storm.
?Myth #4: There’s little you are able to do until the restoration damage experts arrive. There are a number of critical activities it is possible to do immediately that could ensure that subsequent damage to your house or business is minimized.
The greatest challenge following a hurricane or major storm is managing your emotions. The shock from the damage may be overwhelming. The hardest thing to do would be to manage your emotions and concentrate on several tasks that will make a difference. Time is in the essence and the sooner and quicker you total these the safer you and your possessions will be from subsequent damage.
Please note that you can find some tasks that should not be attempted by anyone except an expert. If a major tree is on your house or portions of your walls that have collapsed, it is essential that you contact an expert and wait until they get to you. Also please review articles about the do and don?ts about safely returning to your residence. These incorporate:
?Wear sturdy shoes. The most typical injury following a disaster is cut feet.
?Use battery-powered lanterns or flashlights when examining buildings. Examine walls, floors, doors, staircase and windows to create sure that the building is not in danger of collapsing. Watch for loose drywall or plaster and ceiling that might fall.
?Inspect foundations for cracks or other damage. Cracks and damage to a foundation can render a building uninhabitable.
?Appear for fire hazards. There may be broken or leaking gas lines. Flooded electrical circuits, or submerged furnaces or electrical appliances. Flammable or explosive supplies may come from upstream. Fire may be the most frequent hazard following floods.
?Check for gas leaks. If you smell gas or hear a blowing or hissing noise, open a window and quickly leave the building. Turn off the gas, using the outside main valve if it is possible to and call the gas company from a neighbor?s residence. If you turn off the gas for any reason, a profession must turn it back on.
?Look for electrical system damage. If you see sparks or broken or frayed wire or if you smell burning installation; turn off the electricity at the main fuse box or circuit breaker. If you have to step in water to get towards the box or circuit breaker, call an electrician very first for advice. Electrical equipment should be checked and dried before becoming returned to service.
?Check for sewage and water line damage. If you suspect sewage lines are damaged, avoid using the toilets and call a plumber. If water pipes are damaged, contact the water company, and avoid using water from the tap. You are able to obtain safe water from undamaged water heater or by melting ice cubes.
?Check appliances. If appliances are wet, turn off the electricity at the main fuse box or circuit breaker. Then unplug appliances and let them dry out. Have a professional check your appliances before using.
?Watch out for animals that may have come into buildings with the floodwaters. Use a wood or metal stick to poke through debris. Floodwaters flush several animals and snakes out of their houses.
Once you have returned to your home, the very first step is to document everything on a video camera. Purchasing a small inexpensive camera, like a Flip camera, is worthwhile due to the fact it will accurately record all of the structure and contents seamlessly. Your insurance company will send out an adjuster to record this information but, right after a hurricane, this may take weeks before they are able to get to you. Consequently, before you do any work, you must document the state of your house or business. Your insurance company will rely heavily on your documentation and a video record is far superior to individual camera shots. If this is not feasible, a systematic set of pictures from the outside and inside are required. On the inside, you must document both structure and content. As you enter your house start in one direction and take a picture from the outside of the room and take a picture of each side from the room and continue the same way throughout your house. All structure (walls, ceilings, floors) and content (furniture, clothing, electronics, and valuables) must be documented in the same way from room to room. Make certain that you open kitchen cabinets and drawers and document what exactly is stored including foods and medicines.
Once the documentation is total and you have successfully downloaded them, the next concentrate is always to secure the building from damage from subsequent rain or wind damage. If you want to prevent costly damage you require to secure the structure.
?The roof could be the initial location that damage may have occurred. Tarps and ropes secured to stakes, concrete blocks, or sturdy tress will prevent addition damage to your valuables. This is probably the most important step.
?If you’ll find any cracks inside the walls or windows, secure them temporarily with drywall and screws.
?Inside the house, prevention of mold and mildew is critical. Drywall will turn into mold within a couple of days- and always within 6 to 7 days. If you do not have electricity, any wet soaked drywall cannot be saved. Cut any wet drywall and remove. Water soaked drywall is quite heavy so cut and remove in small pieces. Please note that restoration organizations will have access to significant scale generators that will power equipment for the house and neighborhood so you may want to check.
?Other items that will probably be impossible to save with out electricity for industrial dehumidifiers and fans. Carpet and carpet pad should be removed immediately. This should be done in small sections and removed safely.
?Wood and wood items can dry out safely. Tile and other stone products can be saved.
Documenting your damage, securing your structure, and removal of drywall and heavily water damaged carpets will save you money and prevent mold damage from overtaking your property or business.
As you begin to learn about the dangers and prevention pertaining to Fire, Water and Mold damage in your house or business, you will better understand what steps to take to protect your family members, employees, pets, personal belongings, business records, equipment, building structure, landscaping and surrounding areas. Much more importantly, in addition to knowing what steps it is possible to take to aide in prevention, many of these same techniques will aid you to mitigate risks in case of an emergency related to fire, water or mold damages should they happen to you. As stated earlier in this series, the more you know about the dangers of Fire, Water and Mold, the better prepared you will likely be when disaster strikes and in addition to mitigating risks, you may 1 day assist save the life of someone you love too as yourself, due to the fact disaster can strike anyone, anywhere at any time and it’s as much as you to gain the knowledge to protect your loved ones, house and business and know when to call the professionals who can only respond soon after the emergency strikes.
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Mary O?Hara holds a Masters of Public Well being and has several certifications in mold remediation, fire restoration, lead remediation, and fire damage restoration. She spent 25 years as a wellness care executive with leading well being care organizations in Minneapolis, Seattle, St Louis, and Tampa. She started her initial well being care related business in 2005 in Florida and is really a senior partner in a Disaster Restoration Business serving Florida. In 2010, Mary added a mold assessor course and certification to assist with scientific enquiry of residential and commercial building troubles.
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