Hurricane Earl set sights on Washington DC, New York and Boston
Hurricane Earl has grown into a category 3 hurricane and appears to be growing stronger as it makes its way closer to the East Coast of the United States. The hurricane has continued to grow in size as it has followed Danielle across the Atlantic Ocean. Earl however is following a different path and projections are now indicating there is a strong potential for the storm to touch communities along the East Coast of the U.S. including as far south as North Carolina and north up to parts of Maine.
The path of the hurricane will become more evident over the next 24-48 hours as communities along the East Coast will need to begin making preparation for a potential strike later this week if the storm continues on its westward path. Hurricane Danielle reached stage four status late last week but steered clear of all major land masses thanks to the support of a high pressure system that pushed the storm back out to sea. The high pressure system is still in the atmosphere and will help in pushing Earl back out to the Atlantic, but there remains a strong possibility that parts of the storm will have an impact on land.
Hurricane earl's potential path from National Hurricane Center
Following in Earls footsteps remains another tropical storm Fionna which also could pose a challenge to the East Coast. Presently Fionna is viewed as a large tropical depression, but experts are giving it in excess of ninety percent chance of reaching tropical storm/hurricane status this week. The potential string of damaging hurricanes come on the heels of the five year anniversary of hurricane Katrina, regarded as the worst storm to ever hit the U.S.
Danielle, Earl, Fionna – Trouble brews in the Atlantic
The names of this years tropical storms are reminiscent of the popular Shrek movie series. For residents who live along the Atlantic Coast, the names are becoming a troubling signal that hurricane season has hit its stride as three storms have formed in the Atlantic Ocean this week, with more likely to come off of the Coast of Africa in the upcoming days. The strongest of the tropical storms is Hurricane Danielle, which has reached category 4 status this week and boasts wind gusts in excess of 140 miles per hour. The storm is not projected to reach landfall, although the Island of Bermuda could still be a potential target for the storms outer layers. The pat of Danielle is projecting to do almost a 180 turn in the Atlantic as it moves into a new high pressure air zone coming off of the East Coast of the U.S. shifting the storm in the direction of Europe.
hurricane Danielle, Earl & Fiona - Via Weather.com
The Atlantic hurricane season officially began in July and to date there has not been a large storm to hit the U.S. Earlier this year Monterrey Mexico caught the aftermath of a large tropical storm out of the Gulf, but that has been the largest reported storm to hit North America in 2010. While the path of Danielle puts the east coast out of danger, most hurricane models were projecting that tropical storms Earl and Fionna could take a more western path heading closer to the United States. We anticipate having a clearer picture of the path of Earl and Fionna by mid week next week, just as the month of September arrives on the calendar to coincide with the busiest month of the year for hurricanes and tropical storms. If Earl of Fionna due reach landfall along the Atlantic it will likely be the largest storm to hit the area in the last two years.
Jarvis emergency response cleaning up large commercial office building flood
Jarvis Emergency Service team was dispatched on Sunday evening to a large commercial office building in Southeastern Michigan following a small fire. The fire activated the buildings fire suppression system and resulted in flooding affecting three stories of the building and over 180,000 square feet of office space. Jarvis emergency services responded with eight water extraction vehicles to begin removing the excess water and initiate a clean up plan for the building. The water extraction process lasted all night with personnel working around the clock.
The fire started on the third floor of the office building and caused minimal fire and smoke damage. A majority of the damage caused resulted from the water suppression system which effectively extinguished the fire without substantial structural damages to the property.
There are numerous photos of the water damage restoration process featured below. The large square footage affected by the flooding requires specialized equipment to assist with the structural drying. You can see a demonstration of the use of desiccant humidifiers which are feeding warm air into tubes that are channeled to the inside of the office building. The tubes then disburse the warm air into long plastic chambers (lay flat process) which have slits to push the warm air into the building assisting with speeding up the drying process.
commercial building front photo
ceiling photo - three floors of flood damage
flooded hall photo
desiccant dehumidifiers
dehumidifiers in action
lay flat air drying
emergency response photo
generators & dehumidifiers
Disaster cleanup crews respond to Macomb County storms
Jarvis has deployed numerous emergency response teams to areas of Macomb County (Shelby Township, Washington Township, Macomb Township) that were caught in a severe storm late on Thursday. The unexpected thunderstorm quickly struck isolated areas of Macomb County causing substantial damage and leaving close to 100,000 residents without power. The storm brought gale force winds in excess of eighty miles per hour that wreaked havoc on some of the older neighborhoods throughout the county as large trees were scattered up and down streets.
Most of the devastation following the unexpected storm was to property structures and roofs. Many roofs, including large commercial metal roofs were impacted by the extreme winds and isolated storms. Jarvis disaster response team has been working around the clock assisting with emergency roof tarps and roof repairs to help property owners mitigate future property damages.
commercial building metal roof damage
fallen trees throughout neighborhoods
roof tarping
large tree cut to allow cars through road
tree on house
Jarvis on scene at produce store damaged from storms
first responders
Team Jarvis going to work
Disaster Recovery Tips For Homeowners and Business Following A Catastrophe
Entering into the heart of hurricane season can be an uneasy feeling for homeowners or business owners who have previously experienced the devastation that a hurricane has the potential to deliver. Most property owners who are in areas of high risk secure rider policies to their insurance for flooding or hurricane damages. Property owners who exceed the limits of their policies can look into other means to help recover potential losses from an unexpected storm such as:
FEMA – Federal Emergency Management Agency, may award grants up to $30,000 to eligible homeowners in areas that have been determined as an emergency zone following a devastating storm or flood. FEMA will set up a disaster specific hotline for the affected community for applicants to apply for assistance.
SBA – The small business administration offers loans for rehabilitation of non farm homes and businesses if overall damage within a community exceeds specific criteria.
Commercial Banks – Offer below market interest rates for home repairs under select programs
Red Cross – Works to provide food, shelter and medical assistance
In addition to the above avenues to seek financial assistance, property owners should consult a tax professional to discuss the potential of writing off any property losses on their taxes that were not covered by insurance. Most national mortgage lenders will also offer a grace period for payments while a property owner has been displaced from their home due to a disaster, contact your individual mortgage lender to discuss your options.
FEMA plays a key role in helping communities to rebuild after an unexpected disaster. In addition to providing financial grants to homeowners to assist with rebuilding, FEMA also will provide temporary housing, unemployment assistance, crisis counseling as well as resources to help communities plan for rebuilding. One caveat to obtaining any type of federal assistance for rebuilding a home from a disaster is commitment to obtain insurance to cover potential future losses from a disaster reoccurrence. Individuals who fail to secure this insurance are ineligible from assistance from any type of future flood or hurricane catastrophe.
As the peak of hurricane season is about to begin, property owners can also take defensive mitigation steps to help safeguard their home or business from potential storms. In some cases, insurance companies will place a 30 day hold on any new policies, making them ineligible for financial assistance if a storm occurs within the first thirty days of the policy, so be certain to review your policy and agreement with your agent.
