Hurricanes can cause catastrophic damage, leaving many without a home or possessions. The process of rebuilding is often long, and difficult, and takes a huge emotional and financial toll on those affected. This article will examine some of the key challenges faced when rebuilding after a hurricane.
Assessing the Damage
After a hurricane passes, the first challenge is assessing the extent of the damage. Homes may be partially or completely destroyed by high winds and flooding. Roofs may be torn off, windows shattered, and walls collapsed. Belongings are likely ruined by flood waters that fill homes with contaminated water full of debris. Furniture, appliances, clothes, family heirlooms, and more are often unsalvageable after sitting in foul flood waters. Vehicles parked in garages also often sustain damage from water and debris.
Initial insurance claims must be filed quickly, even if the full scope of damage is not yet known. Homeowners face the daunting task of painstakingly cataloging every damaged or destroyed item in their home, often without having any receipts or proof of ownership left. Pictures and whatever receipts they can gather help document destroyed possessions and property.
Finding Temporary Housing
Most hurricane victims are displaced from their homes for many months or even over a year while rebuilding takes place. Finding temporary housing options is difficult when entire communities are displaced all at once. Living cramped in a small rental apartment or hotel room is extremely difficult, especially for large families. The process of securing short-term housing, navigating insurance claims, finding reputable contractors, and starting repairs can be enormously frustrating.
Dealing with Insurance
Navigating the intricacies of complex insurance claims is often complicated and confusing after major hurricane damage. There are often delays in getting settlements as insurance companies are inundated with claims in the aftermath of widespread destruction. Homeowners need to carefully read policies, document every item lost, get multiple repair estimates, and provide endless paperwork to insurance providers. Additional living expense (ALE) coverage is supposed to pay for temporary housing, but reimbursement is often slow and inadequate. Fighting with insurance providers over proper settlements adds more stress during an already traumatic situation.
Finding Contractors for Repairs
With massive destruction to entire communities, there is huge demand and a limited supply of reputable, affordable contractors to repair and rebuild damaged homes. Even when insured for losses, finding a general contractor to manage the rebuilding process can take months. Subcontractors like electricians, plumbers, and roofers are often overloaded with work and in short supply after disasters. Homeowners may need to vet dozens of contractors before finding one able to take on their project at a fair price. This leads to delays of months or longer before rebuilding work can even start. There are also risks of being defrauded by unscrupulous contractors looking to make a quick buck off of vulnerable disaster victims. Even when an honest contractor is found, the quality of work may suffer when demand exceeds supply.
Paying for Repairs
Even with insurance settlements, homeowners often incur very high out-of-pocket costs to fully repair hurricane damage. Insurance deductibles easily run into the thousands or tens of thousands of dollars, and temporary housing costs add up quickly. Property damage often exceeds coverage maximums after a major disaster. Many families are forced to dig into savings and take out home equity loans or personal loans to cover the shortfall in rebuilding costs not fully compensated by insurance. The financial costs of repairs combined with the emotional toll of replacing all lost belongings are often crushing.
Rebuilding Takes Time
It typically takes a minimum of 6-12 months, if not years, for homes to be fully rebuilt and repaired after major hurricane destruction. Living displaced in cramped temporary accommodations, often far from jobs, schools, friends, and family, adds major stress and disruption. The many delays and frustrations with securing housing, fighting with insurance, finding contractors, and waiting months for work to start cause some to give up on rebuilding because it is just too hard. This prolonged displacement greatly affects employment, finances, mental health, family relationships, and education. Rebuilding after a disaster truly tests one’s endurance and perseverance.
Coping with Trauma
The trauma of surviving a life-threatening hurricane and losing one’s home and belongings can cause severe and lasting psychological effects. Anxiety, depression, panic attacks, and PTSD are unfortunately very common after living through the horrors of a hurricane and its aftermath. The long, drawn-out stress of rebuilding takes a major toll both mentally and emotionally. Counseling is often needed to help process grief over lost loved ones and possessions and to cope with the trauma of surviving a disaster. The sense of safety and security in one’s home is often lost after surviving hurricane destruction. Nightmares, flashbacks, hypervigilance, and uncontrollable anxiety are real possibilities for years after rebuilding.
Strain on Relationships
The numerous pressures, frustrations, grief, and trauma caused by rebuilding a life after hurricane destruction often severely strain personal relationships with spouses and loved ones. Displacement from homes, schools, and jobs puts people in an abnormal situation. Financial stress over making ends meet after a disaster causes strife. Grief and trauma can cause mental health issues that affect relationships. The strain of living in temporary lodging can be challenging. Major life decisions about rebuilding and relocating after a disaster often cause couples or families to clash and argue. Unfortunately, research shows rates of divorce, domestic violence, and child abuse increase significantly after major disasters such as hurricanes. The accumulated stress and challenges of rebuilding clearly damage close relationships.
Loss of Community
The community connections and support systems people relied on before the hurricane disaster are suddenly disrupted and lost. Friends, neighbors, and colleagues are forced to relocate to various temporary lodgings, often in different towns or even states. Favorite community places like libraries, churches, schools, and parks may be damaged or closed indefinitely. The shared experience of surviving disaster does create camaraderie and bonding between those rebuilding. But the normal web of community interactions that provide a sense of belonging, connection, and support is inevitably damaged and lost amidst the upheaval of rebuilding somewhere new. Reestablishing these critical community bonds and supports takes a great deal of time and effort.
Reconstructing a home, community, livelihood, and sense of security after surviving a catastrophic hurricane presents ongoing challenges for months or years. Insurance battles, displacement, shortage of affordable contractors, financial stress, trauma, strained relationships, and loss of community all commonly occur. Some days, the emotional and financial toll of rebuilding can seem endless. But the human spirit is remarkably resilient.
If you need legal help dealing with home insurers or contractors, please contact our law firm today. We’re here to help you receive fair compensation and pursue the resources you need to recover and rebuild your life after a hurricane disaster.
You can visit our office at 200 Lake Morton Drive, Suite 300, Lakeland, FL 33801 or call for a free consultation on (833) 941-7867.
Hurricanes can cause extensive wind damage when they make landfall or even when they pass nearby coastal areas. The states most vulnerable to hurricane damage are Florida, Texas, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and parts of Georgia. These southern coastal states on the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico are in the most common paths for hurricanes and tropical storms to make landfall, usually between the months of June through November. Their geography makes them prone to high winds, storm surge flooding, and heavy rains, which often cause severe destruction.
It is important to take steps before hurricane season starts to protect your home or business from potential wind damage.
Secure Outdoor Items
One of the easiest ways to prevent wind damage is to bring inside or firmly secure down any loose outdoor items like patio furniture, grills, potted plants, yard decorations, garbage cans, etc. Anything that could blow away or turn into dangerous flying debris should be properly stored ahead of time. Consider installing storm shutters over windows and doors if you live in hurricane-prone regions.
Inspect Trees and Roofing
Take some time to look over large trees on your property. Trim any dead branches and identify any areas of erosion or cracks in tree trunks that make them more vulnerable to toppling over. Have a professional arborist inspect any questionable-looking older/larger trees.
Get up on your roof and clear away any debris in gutters or around vents. Look for any areas where shingles are missing or cracked as they can easily blow off in high winds. Reinforce roof decking and siding materials if needed.
Plan an Evacuation Route
If you live in an evacuation zone, have an escape plan ready to go the moment authorities announce it’s time to leave. Know exactly where you will go and have supplies packed so you can leave at a moment’s notice once the order is given. Don’t wait until the hurricane hits or a tornado is on the ground from feeder bands.
Responding After Wind Damage Occurs
Even after the winds have died down, you can’t let your guard down yet.
Stay Inside & Be Cautious
If your home sustains roof damage, blown-out windows, etc. do not exit the interior rooms until the winds have fully died down and it is safe to assess. Beware of fallen power lines, debris, and downed trees outside once the storm passes. Only call 911 if there is a true emergency like a fire or injury.
Start Repairs & Document Damage
Have tarps, plywood, tools, etc. ready to make temporary repairs like covering holes in the roof, walls, or windows to prevent further interior water damage from rain getting inside after the storm winds subside. Take extensive photos/video to fully document the damage for insurance claims. Keep records of repair expenses as well.
Contact Us
Notify us as soon as possible after damage occurs so we can help you get your insurance claim submitted for review. We will work with you to see what repairs are reasonable to initiate immediately yourself (like removing downed trees) and clarify which need official inspection first. Insurance claims can be tricky, so you need experts like us on your side.
Visit our office at 200 Lake Morton Drive, Suite 300, Lakeland, FL 33801.
Call us today for a free consultation on (833) 941-7867.
Hurricane storm surge poses a major threat to coastal communities. As hurricanes make landfall, they push a wall of ocean water ashore with tremendous force. This storm surge can cause extreme flooding, especially in low-lying areas, with water levels reaching as high as 20 feet or more above ground level. The effects of this flooding on houses can be severe, even catastrophic. From foundation damage to total destruction, storm surge flooding impacts the structural integrity of homes in multiple ways. Understanding these impacts is key for homeowners in hurricane-prone regions.
Storm Surge Height and Destructive Power
The height of storm surge is a major determinant of its destructive capacity. Higher storm surge equals more intense flooding, with faster moving and higher volume water. This tremendous hydraulic force presses against the exterior walls of homes with incredible pressure. Six feet of surge flooding can demolish large sections of standard wood-framed house walls. Eight feet of rise or more leaves little standing but a home’s core and roof structure.
Even houses reinforced to withstand hurricane-force winds can fail under the intense lateral pushing water load of a tall surge. Two-story homes are especially vulnerable, as the first level floods while upper levels catch wind, leading to buckling or collapse. The more intense the surge height and flooding, the greater the probability of major home structural damage. Surge levels over 10 feet almost guarantee massive failures in all but the most robustly engineered coastal dwellings.
Soaking, Erosion and Foundation Damage
Even if they are not outright destroyed by storm surge, houses can suffer crippling impacts to their structural soundness. The floodwaters themselves cause damage, as prolonged soaking deteriorates building materials, warps support beams, and erodes foundations over time. Additionally, fast flowing surge water essentially batters the substructure of flooded homes for hours or days, scouring away supporting soils and rocks.
Undermined foundations crack, shift and sink unevenly, profoundly compromising the integrity of the overall structure. Concrete or masonry walls develop gaps and fissures as they settle while upper levels remain stationary, straining connections to joists and rafters. Any house left standing after lengthy major surge flooding likely has serious structural issues. Post-flood inspections invariably reveal alarming cracks, separations, and misalignments caused by uneven sinking and soil erosion. These undermine the load-bearing capacity the home requires to be considered structurally sound.
Mold and Rot: Pervasive Secondary Impacts
Even after surge waters recede, the problems compound for flooded homes. Waterlogged materials allow for rampant mold growth inside walls, floors, and furnishings. Wet wood beams, internal supports and external sheathings also rot progressively. Unchecked mold infestations create respiratory health hazards for occupants while advancing rot silently destabilizes framing elements. This pervasive moisture damage and material decomposition behind the scenes further undermines the overall structural stability of surge-flooded homes. On the surface, houses may appear largely intact at first. But on the inside, they continue to weaken bit by bit through these secondary moisture impacts in the weeks and months after the storm. By the time an owner discovers a buckling floor or wall, the unseen decay and mold growth have often already structurally doomed the dwelling.
Is it Worth Trying to Save Them?
For homeowners saddled with a surge-flooded house, a difficult question arises: is saving the home even worth the cost and effort? Foundation repairs, mold remediation, beam replacement and soil stabilization can run into the tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars – exceeding many homes’ pre-flood market values. Local building codes may require lengthy permitting processes or trigger improved codes during repairs, driving costs even higher still.
Delays also allow ongoing deterioration as owners wait on contractors, financing, permitting, and inspections. Depending on a home’s initial value and extent of damage, owners often reach the unfortunate conclusion that their once beloved home simply cannot feasibly be restored to a structurally sound, livable condition. Tragically, cherished dwellings that held a lifetime of memories must be left behind due to insurmountable structural and financial realities.
Insurance Battles and Seeking Compensation
Surge flooding leaves many houses totally demolished or structurally too unstable to repair at reasonable cost. This represents a painful financial loss for storm victims. Homeowners’ insurance policies may provide some coverage, but claims processes often involve steep hurdles in the aftermath of such widespread coastal disasters. Mass claims strain insurer resources, leading to systematic delays or denials to conserve funds. Even good-faith insurers often dispute the extent of structural instability, pressing homeowners to fund questionable repairs themselves.
By contacting competent legal counsel specializing in denied or limited insurance claims related to hurricane home damage, you take an important step toward getting fairly compensated. An experienced lawyer can advise if you have grounds to compel your insurer to fully cover your losses. They can also determine if negligence by other parties – home builders, for example – contributed to the extent of damages. In the long and arduous path to recovering from catastrophic surge flooding, getting legal help improves the odds of securing your financial rights.
Hurricane storm surge unleashes fierce destructive energy against houses in its path. The force of the floodwaters themselves, combined with ensuing moisture damage, takes a heavy toll on the structural integrity of soaked homes. Even houses left physically standing often prove to have critical underlying compromises, making saving them an unreasonable proposition for owners. Yet insurers all too frequently fail disaster victims through unwarranted claim denials and delays.
By consulting qualified legal counsel, you improve the chances of obtaining fair insurance compensation, or possibly damages from negligent home builders. After having your life turned upside down by catastrophic hurricane flooding, getting proper legal support helps the long process of staying on your feet and securing accountability. Though material possessions may be lost, hope lies ahead – if you know your legal rights and work with an experienced professional to demand the resources you need to rebuild.
If you’re struggling to receive an insurance payout following a storm, contact us today.
You can visit our office at 200 Lake Morton Drive, Suite 300, Lakeland, FL 33801.
Or give us a call for a free consultation on (833) 941-7867.