How Harmful is Soot on Appliances, Countertops, Walls, and Other Surfaces After a Fire?

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How Harmful is Soot on Appliances, Countertops, Walls, and Other Surfaces After a Fire?

Once a fire has been put out, you may feel that you are in the clear. This isn’t necessarily the case; while extinguishing a fire does indeed remove a clear and present danger to your home and your family, it leaves behind smoke damage, ash, and soot, all of which can cause long term damage on their own.

Soot is residue from burned materials, which includes fuels, wood, and more. In large deposits, such as within a chimney place, it can even re-ignite. The type of soot that you’ll be dealing with will be less concentrated, but no less of a hazard. Inhaling soot can lead to cardiovascular problems in people of any age or level of health. Continue reading “How Harmful is Soot on Appliances, Countertops, Walls, and Other Surfaces After a Fire?” →

The Dangers of Soot

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It doesn’t seem that dangerous. It’s just the byproduct of a fire… maybe from a chimney, a furnace puff-back, even an over-zealous gas grill. When the fire is out, you should be able to clean up the soot residue easily, right?
Not so fast! Soot has some characteristics that everyone should consider before attempting to clean. Those who perform fire
damage work understand the dangers of soot. So do emergency personnel like firemen. In fact, outdoor soot is regulated by the EPA, classified as a criteria pollutant.
Consider these facts about soot. Continue reading “The Dangers of Soot” →

7 Facts About Disasters and Why Disaster Response is Important

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7 Facts About Disasters and Why Disaster Response is Important

 

We live in a world where natural disasters are unfortunately common occurrences, so it is extremely important to always be prepared for them. Get familiar with what kind of natural disasters (hurricanes, tornadoes, landslides, etc.) affect the region you live in and make yourself aware of different disaster response options you have. These services exist to be on-call and offer assistance when you experience an earthquake, house fire, or any other unexpected disaster event. Below are seven facts you should know about disasters.

  • In 2012, 905 natural disasters struck worldwide including tornadoes, droughts, earthquakes, hail storms, floods, hurricanes, and wildfires.
  • It is important to devise a disaster response plan with the older adults in your life. With Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Sandy, over half the victims of both catastrophes were senior citizens.
  • Within one decade, from 2002 to 2012, there has been over $1.7 trillion in damages related to disasters. These disasters have affected approximately 2.9 billion people.
  • In 2012 alone, almost 50% of disaster-related fatalities were caused by hydrological events including mass movements and flooding.
  • Hurricanes can reach wind speeds of over 160 miles an hour. Often, these hurricanes can unleash 2.4 trillion gallons of rain in a day causing massive flooding and horrendous wind storms.
  • Floods are the most common natural disasters. In the United States alone, the President declared that over 90% of natural disasters were flood related.
  • Too large of a percentage of homeowners do not have a disaster preparedness plan. A survey conducted showed that 80% of people do not have a home evacuation drill and an additional 60% were not aware of what their town’s evacuation route was.