Post-Hurricane Tips: Before You Go Home Again

September 18, 2017

For anyone displaced due to a natural disaster, it is tempting to rush back home as soon as possible. I get it – you want to see how bad the damage is. I felt the same way with my condo in Clearwater, FL after Irma came for a visit. I wasn’t hunkered down in an emergency shelter, but at my primary residence over a thousand miles north stuck watching the Weather Channel to get a glimpse of the aftermath.

My first reaction was to rush down to inspect the damage soon after the storm had blown through. However, I heeded the warning of local authorities to just stay out of their way and let them do their job for awhile, like getting roads cleared and power restored. When I do head down south, I’m going to follow some of the tips provided at www.DisasterAssistance.gov.

Here’s a summary: 

Before you open your front door when you return, here are some things to watch out for:

  1. Look for any downed power lines or obvious structural damage and DO NOT ENTER your home if you have any doubts about your safety.
  2. If any of your appliances run on natural gas, do the smell test. A gas leak will have a rotten egg smell. Open a window and turn of the gas valve before heading back outside to call the gas company.
  3. If you have lost power, turn off the main breaker and unplug your appliances. Turn off your AC. My husband’s biggest concern, being an HVAC guy, was that the outdoor AC condenser had been submerged underwater and might short out when the power came back on.
  4. Don’t drink the tap water! Many municipalities have issued a water alert for the public water systems. If you are on a well, you may need to do a chlorine bleach shock to disinfect the water from any bacterial contamination. Imagine all that dirty flood water seeping in the ground and into your well.
  5. Speaking of bacteria, resist the temptation to grill up those burgers in your freezer. If your power had been out for awhile but got restored before you came home, food in your freezer may have refroze but you don’t want to take the risk. Throw out all perishables, especially meats and dairy foods.
  6. Finally, you may not be the only one who calls your place their home. Some of my neighbors reported hearing the pitter patter of footsteps in the attic, and found that a raccoon had taken refuge from the storm. If you can, simply open a window and try to get the animal to leave on its own, or call your local animal control office if necessary.

I’m hoping I don’t find any issues when I do make my way down to Florida, but even if it’s a couple months from now, I’ll still be following these steps.

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