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Fire & Water - Cleanup & Restoration

Is Flood Restoration Dangerous in My Slidell Home?

6/16/2020 (Permalink)

Flooded home Homeowners have to deal with many things which may include water damage. Contact SERVPRO right away.

Despite the experience of our qualified professionals, there are risks and hazards associated with restoring a flood-damaged home. 

There is always a temptation to pursue DIY cleaning and recovery for your Slidell home after flood losses, though with how rapidly water damage can migrate throughout the residence, many of these same property owners do not realize how extensive and widespread the costs can become. In addition to the concerns about inadequate water removal and drying, lingering flood effects in your residence can lead to more direct health hazards and risks.

Because there are so many degrees and levels of flood damage in Slidell homes after these disasters, recovery often must occur in several stages. Each of these phases posits its specific risks and potential hazards, so it is always advisable to lean on the expertise and fast response of our SERVPRO team to help. We have accredited technicians with endorsements from the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC), the American Bio Recovery Association (ABRA), and the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA.)

What Should I Do Before Help Arrives? 

There are always steps that you can take to lessen the impact of flood damage in your home before our experienced technicians arrive. While the bulk of the restoration and recovery efforts accomplished by our SERVPRO professionals, there are only a few steps that homeowners can take in the hours leading up to our arrival. It is only advisable to pursue these potential steps when it is safe to do so. Some of the things that you can do to help make mitigation and restoration more efficient when our team gets to your home include:

  • Content Recovery – Because standing water can be such a substantial threat to your home, any of the contents exposed to this pooling can become irreparably damaged without relocating them to safer places in the house. 
  • Shut Off Utilities – It is always advisable to consider what utilities are live in your home before you vacate the premises. If possible, you can sever specific services entering the property like your water to prevent worsening conditions if active flooding were to damage plumbing, conduit, or other receptacles. 
  • Get Everyone Out – In some situations, whether you can complete other items on this shortlist or not, you should prioritize getting everyone in the house to safety. There are specific health hazards that could impact your family if you do not act quickly. 

What Dangers Exist During Flooding? 

You should appreciate that with any disaster that affects your home, from fires to flooding, there are specific health hazards and risks that exist until the damage gets restored. With flooding, there are a few particular conditions that could begin that threaten the health of those exposed or could cause injuries or worse. Even when flood damage remains concentrated to a specific area of your home, some of the active threats that could exist include:

  • Electric Shock – Shock hazards are one of the most common threats when flooding exceeds several inches in depth. When water levels rise to live outlet receptacles and other powered electronics, it could send a current through the standing water that could injure unprotected restoration professionals or occupants of the house. 
  • Fall Hazards – As you might expect, any depth of flooding in your home could come with some degree of threat of slipping and falling. In natural flooding scenarios, mud and silt can add to the possibility of falls. 
  • Debris – Many natural flooding scenarios introduce debris, mud, and contaminants into the house's affected areas.
  • Animal Infestations – Natural flooding disasters can allow bugs, snakes, and other animals into your property with the rising and rushing waters. 

How Can SERVPRO Manage Contamination? 

Contaminants are a continual threat when natural flooding scenarios exist. In these situations, our SERVPRO professionals must consider the disaster to be a blackwater, Category 3 loss events. This classification illustrates a likelihood that floodwater encountered some form of contamination, from sewage and bacteria through viral pathogens. Some of the options for managing these potential contaminants include:

  • Containment
  • Controlled Demolition
  • Antibacterial Treatment

While flooding can be destructive enough on its own, natural flooding presents a more significant loss scenario that must get immediately addressed. Our SERVPRO of Slidell team can help with a rapid response that ensures we can install containment barriers to reduce the spread and severity of loss effects. Through extraction and drying, our professionals can work to make flood losses "Like it never even happened." Give us a call anytime you need us at (985) 649-1516.

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