Spring Can Deliver Severe Weather Surprises

4/6/2021 (Permalink)

Spring can deliver severe weather surprises, it's important to plan in advance

Local SERVPRO property damage restoration specialist offers property owners tips about possible hazards and advance planning tools

Spring brings warmer weather, longer days, and a much anticipated break from winter. It also brings a very real threat of severe weather, according to disaster recovery specialist, Donny McKendall of SERVPRO of Worcester/ SERVPRO of Shrewsbury/Westborough. “The frequent change in cold and warm temperatures in spring creates an elevated risk for severe weather across the country,” said McKendall . “Ranging from flooding rain in the Northwest to thunderstorms and tornadoes in the Southeast, spring weather can be unpredictable at best and downright dangerous at worst.”

“When you give some thought to the types of hazards a spring storm could produce, you can begin to plan for the safety of your family as well as your home or business,” said McKendall. Depending on where you live, here are some of the ways a spring storm might damage your home or business:

• Water damage caused by flooding from melting snow, foundation washouts from coastal storms, frozen pipes that burst, sump pumps that fail during power outages, torrential downpours, or faulty air conditioning condensation lines during a heat wave.
• Fire damage caused by use of alternate emergency heat sources, sprinkler systems that fail due to freezing pipes, downed power lines, or environmental conditions leading to structure fires.
• Wind damage caused by fallen trees and limbs, damage to siding and roofs, and downed power lines.

 “Of course, most of these hazards don’t happen in isolation,” said McKendall. “For example, tornadoes and violent thunderstorms put property owners at risk for water, fire, and wind damage. It’s important to understand which hazards might affect your property and your family, and then take the proper steps to prepare.”

McKendall suggests investigating resources available online from the U.S. Government’s “Ready” program at https://www.ready.gov/severe-weather and other free tools, like the SERVPRO READY app at https://ready.SERVPRO.com/home/mobileapp. Home and business owners can use this app to store essential contact and property information electronically, and then access it in seconds with a mobile device. Local business owners who also designate SERVPRO of Worcester/ SERVPRO of Shrewsbury/Westborough as their disaster mitigation and restoration provider gain peace of mind from a no-cost assessment of their facility conducted by SERVPRO professionals, who then assist the owner in completing a comprehensive Emergency READY Profile® (ERP) to be stored in the READY app.

“Because it’s difficult to predict when severe weather will strike – or what form it may take – it’s important to plan in advance,” said McKendall.