Disaster Recovery News

Fire season is quickly approaching, and being prepared before it arrives can save you money and the pain that comes from losing the things you care about.  There are simple steps you can now take to prepare your property, home and possessions for fire season.

• Prepare Your Property
  • Clear away debris. Debris is good fuel for a fire. By clearing things like leaves and long grasses from around your home or business, you will make it harder for a fire to flourish.
  • Prune trees and shrubs. Keeping trees and shrubs pruned improves their vitality and leaves less for a fire to burn. Therefore, this routine maintenance will increase their ability to heal from fire damage.
  • Keep landscape well-watered. When yards or plants are kept lush and green, the moisture contained within them will make it harder for them to be consumed. A green lawn will also help slow down a fire’s progression through a property.

More on preparing your property to protect against fires.

• Prepare Your Home
  • Maintain your roof. Rid your roof of moss and pine needles, which are other forms of debris that fuel a fire. Also make sure your gutters do not have any leaves in them, especially if they are dry.
  • Make an emergency plan. Knowing what to do if a fire does happen on your property is just as important, if not more important, that preparing for the fire. Make a preparedness plan at home with your family and one at your business with employees. This plan should outline an evacuation plan that includes where exits in a building are located. Keep a first aid kit, flashlights and a list of important phone numbers. More on making and emergency preparedness kit.

Learn more tips about preparing your home for fire season.

• Prepare Your Possessions
  
  • Keep your insurance up to date. By reviewing and updating your insurance policies, you’ll know exactly what is covered in the event of a fire. Be sure to notify your insurance agent of any property changes so you are not under-insured should there be a fire. Read more about insurance.
  • Back up computer files: A computer left behind in a fire is easily destroyed along with all the data it contains. By backing-up the information online, you will save time and money when recovering the data. Learn about document recovery.

At least 108 people are estimated to be dead by the wildfires in Melbourne, Australia that have wiped-out at least 750 homes. The Guardian has compared this event to a “smouldering, post-apocalyptic wasteland” that has taken out the town of Marysville.

More than 330,000 hectares have been destroyed. Officials are estimating it will “weeks” to just contain the fires. The region of Australia affected by the blazes has experienced record-setting heat and strong winds that made fire-fighting conditions worse. Arsonists are blamed for the deadly fires.

More on the Australian wildfires.

Learn about how to prepare for wildfire damage. After a fire, there are steps one can take to help to get life and business back to a more normal state. A restoration company has services that can restore items and building structures damaged by a fire.