FEMA National Preparedness Month Reminds Property Owners that Disaster Prep Can Help Prevent Loss

Local SERVPRO storm damage mitigation specialist spotlights resources designed to help home and business owners weather the unexpected

This year the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is urging home and business owners to think of disaster preparedness to help protect their families and the legacies they have worked so hard to create.¹ FEMA designates each September as National Preparedness Month, a time to prepare or review your family and business emergency plans for surviving and then managing the aftermath of an unexpected disaster.

“As a leader in fire and water cleanup and restoration services, mold mitigation, and storm response, SERVPRO understands the importance of preparation before disaster strikes,” says disaster mitigation specialist Alan Ahlberg of SERVPRO® of Yamhill and Tillamook Counties. “SERVPRO employs a full-time meteorologist and uses a cutting-edge geographic information system to provide each SERVPRO franchise with real-time, location-based insight on where storms are likely to hit and what kind of damage they could inflict. Since time is of the essence in limiting or preventing damage to properties after a flood, this advance, predictive intelligence can accelerate response time, making the difference between an inconvenience and a total loss for our SERVPRO customers.”

The U.S. Financial and Banking Information Infrastructure Committee (FBIIC) states that flooding is the nation’s most frequent and costly natural disaster, representing 90% of all natural disasters in the U.S. FBIIC adds that you don’t need to be in a high-risk, flood prone area to be affected. Nearly 25% of flood insurance claims come from moderate-to-low risk areas. ²

“While you can’t predict when a natural disaster will strike or what shape that disaster will take, you can prepare to minimize its effects on your home, your family, and your life,” says Ahlberg.

FEMA offers a variety of no-cost tools³ to help you evaluate your risk, create a communication plan, sign up for alerts, put together an emergency kit customized to your family’s needs, protect important documents, and more.

In addition to following FEMA’s guidelines on disaster readiness, Ahlberg encourages Cornelius property owners to consider using the SERVPRO READY app⁴ to store essential contact and property information electronically where it can be accessed in seconds with a mobile device. “This is a no-cost tool available to all homeowners,” says Ahlberg, “but local business owners who designate SERVPRO of Yamhill and Tillamook Counties as their disaster mitigation and restoration provider will also benefit from a no-cost assessment of their facility along with help completing a comprehensive Emergency READY Profile® (ERP) to be stored in the READY app.”

For more information on SERVPRO of Yamhill and Tillamook Counties, please contact Alan Ahlberg at (866) 888-3894 or alan@servprohfyt.com. For more information on SERVPRO® and the SERVPRO Emergency READY Program, please visit https://ready.servpro.com.

¹ https://www.ready.gov/september
² https://www.fbiic.gov/public/2010/mar/FloodingHistoryandCausesFS.PDF
³ https://www.ready.gov/be-informed
⁴ https://ready.servpro.com/home/mobileapp

About SERVPRO
For more than 50 years, SERVPRO has been a trusted leader in fire and water cleanup and restoration services, construction, mold mitigation, and biohazard and pathogen remediation. SERVPRO’s professional services network of more than 2,000 individually owned and operated franchises spans the United States and Canada, responding to property damage emergencies large and small – from million-square-foot commercial facilities to individual homes. When disaster strikes, homeowners, business owners, and major insurance companies alike rely on SERVPRO to make it “Like it never even happened.”

For Immediate Release: Contact: Alan Ahlberg
SERVPRO^® of Yamhill and Tillamook Counties
(866) 888-3894 alan@servprohfyt.com