A look at the weather map shows three storms swirling in the Atlantic Ocean today: Danielle, Earl and the latest, Fiona. Danielle, once just a tropical storm, is now a category 4 hurricane—the first major one of the season. Hurricane Danielle is reported to have 135 mph winds and a path that leads it east of Bermuda at the moment. Tropical Storm Earl only has 45 mph winds, but MSNBC reports its path looks a little more problematic and is worth watching closely. Tropical Storm Fiona just developed off the east coast of Africa and few details are known about it right now.
Prepare Your Home against Hurricane Water Damage
With storms starting late in the hurricane season, home and business owners need to keep back-to-school preparations and hurricane preparations in the back of their minds. A common misconception about hurricanes is that their winds cause the most damage. However, the truth is that water is a hurricane’s most damaging factor. Two-inches of water flooding a home can cost up to $8,000 in repairs.
‘Tis the season for hurricanes, and it’s up to you to be prepared:
Know the most vulnerable places in your building or home. Find cracks and seal them ASAP, even if the weather forecast is nice. Make sure you focus on cracks around windows and doors since those can make a little bit of water turn into a big problem.
Have sandbags ready. Even if you are not technically in a flood zone, it’s always smart to place sandbags in the areas under the doors of your home and business when the weather is nasty.
Place important items and items you do not want getting wet on the second story of a business or home. If you have heavy furniture, raise it onto cinderblocks.
Cover your belongings with a plastic tarp; your electronic equipment will thank you. Though a room may not flood, there is always the potential for a leak in the roof.
Call a professional ASPAP if there is any water damage after a storm. The longer water damaged items and wet documents sit around, the more damage they will experience. Additionally, bacteria and mold thrive in and on wet or damp items, which could put your family’s health at risk.
It only takes a couple hours of work to protect your belongings from water damage and save you thousands of dollars. Make an emergency preparedness checklist today.
Logo from the Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens Home website
The Manor House at Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens had water damage and mold problems in the 1990s. A small stream would flow through the basement because of poordrainage, causing plaster to crumble and other damage to the estate. In addition, the wall and balustrade that formed the outer boundary of the West Terrace also suffered water damage. Instead of just fixing the water damage and removing the growing mold, those who managed the estate saw the problem as an opportunity to make big improvements.
A Decade Later
$10 million and thirteen years later, the historical site in West Akron, Ohio is nearly finished with its water-management project with the much-anticipated West Terrace and Japanese Garden. The project allowed for the repair of the building’s water damage and the restoration of other areas of the estate. Photos found of the estate’s original landscaping, which the original owner’s son took, guided those who planned the restoration and renovation of the site.
Water-damage restoration techniques included creating a drainage system under terrace steps and repairing the reflecting pool, which had leaks and faulty repairs.
Leaks, water damage and mold, when they are not taken care of promptly and correctly, have high costs. Waiting to repair such issues will deem more expensive the longer it is put-off, can affect the health of those exposed to the mold and can cause structural damage to a building. As soon as you see mold, a leak or water damage in a building, immediately investigate the source of the water damage and repair it as soon as you can. Not doing so will cost you more in the end.
Flooding, extending from the Midwestern states to the east coast of the U.S., has caused unforeseen devastation and cleanup costs. States affected by floodwaters include Iowa, Delaware, Virginia, Kentucky, Maryland, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and more. The causes of the floods are due to severe thunderstorms in the north and along the Atlantic Coast that filled rivers and lakes, and Tropical Depression Bonnie, which brewed in the Gulf of Mexico, according to Reuters.
Clean-Up Tips
Now that the storms are gone, residents in the flood-damaged states are left to clean the devastation in extreme heat. To those cleaning up after the aftermath of the natural disasters, consider the following tips:
Take pictures of all the damage to your property and write notes about it on a piece of paper. When individuals are stressed-out important information can easily slip their memory, and this type of documentation is helpful when making a claim with an insurance company or are seeking remediation assistance.
Use water cautiously. While water from wells may be okay for bathing in, only drink bottled water or water you boiled.
Start cleaning flood-damaged items as soon as you know it is safe to do so. Heat and moisture are the perfect breeding grounds for mold. Mold can grow in as little as three days, so it is to one’s advantage to act quickly, especially when it comes to wet documents, wet books and photographs. This is something business owners need to act quickly on so they can get back in business ASAP.
See if FEMA has declared a disaster in your area. Checkout their mobile site, m.fema.gov, and apply for disaster aid on your Smartphone.
Call in the experts. The assistance of a disaster restoration company can help you make sure your wet items are completely dry and mold-free so you do not have reoccurring mold problems and damage in the future.
While storms are scary and the aftermath is stressful, you have the power get your life back to normal quickly when you clean the water damage correctly. Learn more about what to do after a flood.
Rapid Refile recently completed a project for a medical office in southwest Reading, Pennsylvania that suffered extensive damage from a two-alarm fire. Although the cause of the fire was not immediately known, officials think it started on the roof, which had wooden beams inside of it. It did not take long for the flames to consume the entire rooftop. Although the medical office had a fire alarm, the local fire department never received the signal it sends when the alarm sounds. The firefighters only learned about the blaze from neighbors who called 9-1-1. A report from the “Reading Eagle” states the medical office’s “roof was destroyed and the interior was charred.”
Water and smoke-damaged documents
Preparing documents to be restored
After the fire, Rapid Refile was contracted to help remediate the building’s extensively damaged medical documents. Medical documents the professionals at Rapid Refile can help restore include water-damaged documents, x-rays, wet books and damaged photographs. By calling Rapid Refile, the medical office was able to prevent mold growth and deterioration caused by the fire’s smoke and soot, which would have caused further damage to the documents, and aided in business continuity. The professionals at Rapid Refile handle all medical documents per HIPPA standards and handle sensitive materials with strict protocols to ensure the privacy of those served by medical offices.
Photo from Massachusetts Dept. of Environmental Protection
Fears of the Birdland levee are all too present in the minds of Des Moines, Iowa residents who live near Saylorville Lake and the Des Moines River Valley. It was only two years ago that the levees broke and flooded the neighborhood.
Forecasts Call for Rain
As forecasters predict rainy weather, residents who live around Saylorville Lake prepare their homes and property for the worst. The “Des Moines Register” reports “engineers fret that weakened levees could slough off into the river as water levels drop, which could bring their block another catastrophic flood.”
Preparing for a Flood
Despite the anger residents may feel at the federal and city government for not having built a stronger levee, they must keep looking forward and prepare for what may come. With the news of the potential levee breach, residents prepared their homes by learning from their past mistakes and considering expert advice. This advice included the following:
Place all valuables on the second story of your home or in a safe location that is not in the path of the potential flood.
Secure items that have the potential to float away, such as gas tanks.
Know your local evacuation routes and the location of the nearest emergency shelters.
Be protected with not only homeowner’s or renter’s insurance, but with flood insurance as well.
Plan to recover. Keep the contact information for your insurance agency and policy numbers handy. In addition, have the contact information for a professional restoration company with you so they can help you remove the floodwaters from your home, which can quickly cause damaging mold growth if left untreated.
