Blog

It’s one thing to prepare your home and property for a wildfire. It’s entirely different to deal with a fire as it occurs. Just because your land is physically prepared does not mean that a fire will not threaten your home, and in moments of panic people often lose common sense and make potentially fatal mistakes. However, you and your household can easily avoid injury if you simply remain calm and remember a few simple fire damage preparation and evacuation techniques.

The process of restoring water-damaged books can be complicated, time-consuming, and costly, so it is no wonder that institutions such as museums, libraries, and schools are constantly looking for new and effective ways to prevent water damage as well as plans of action if such damage does occur. Rare book rooms are common in most major libraries and bookstores in the country, and some museums and organizations are home to the most valuable, important pieces of literary history. The American Bible Society’s Rare Book Collection contains the first edition of the King James Bible, the Rare Book & Special Collections division of the Library of Congress houses hundreds of first-edition books from throughout American history, and even most colleges and universities have very important rare book collections. When these collections are damaged by water or mold, the institutions that house them not only face a significant financial loss, the world loses a vital part of its history as well.

The rainy season for most parts of the country begins in November and ends in April, and with it comes the risk of heavy flooding. Many people are unaware or apathetic to the risk of a flood in their area, a fact that causes hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of flood damage to home and business owners each year. But with so many insurance companies trying to sell you flood coverage, how do you know what kind of a policy you should invest in, how much you should expect to pay, and the benefits you should expect for your money? It can seem overwhelming, but the first step in feeling confident in your insurance coverage is understanding a little bit about what flood coverage is, what kinds of policies exist, and, most importantly, what coverage fits for your particular flood risk.

Floods are one of most common natural disasters in the United States. Unfortunately, there is no set “flood season” as this varies from state-to-state and at different times of the year. However, a flood could occur anywhere, no matter how dry the ground is or how high up a property is located. If an area can receive rain, it has the potential to flood. When a building is vulnerable to flood damage, there are steps property owners can take to prepare for the worst.

Since the 1970’s, the number of big hurricanes has gone up by about 70%. In the last few years, it seems like the U.S. has not gotten a break from these tropical forces. Hurricanes Ike, Katrina, and Rita, to name just a few, have created millions of dollars in damages to our cities not to mention threatened and taken lives. We can’t change what those storms have done, but we can learn from the lessons they taught us.