Knowing what to do before a fire is already complicated enough. Handling things during and much less after a fire even more so. These aren’t events that a lot of us will have to deal with in our lifetimes. And although the severity and devastation vary from case to case, it’s obviously never a pleasant experience to go through. If you’ve been put in the unfortunate position of having to handle the aftermath of a fire, here’s a checklist that hopefully helps you get things back on track!
Safety
The first and foremost concern is obviously safety. If you haven’t already contacted emergency services, you should do so. It may seem obvious from an outside perspective, but the overwhelming number of thoughts flying around in someone’s head after something like this may cloud their decision making. Responders will tell you if your home is safe to be in at all, what parts aren’t if any, and hazardous conditions to watch out for. The last thing you need after a fire is having you or a family member take a fall through a fire-damaged home that is no longer structurally sound.
Insurance
The next step is contacting any insurance you may have on the home and getting the claim process started. This will potentially help in finding temporary housing, and at least start the process for putting you in touch with qualified professionals and a checklist of next steps in order to resolve the situation as soon as possible.
Security
The next step, unfortunately, is to secure your home. It’s quite common to have looting happen after a fire occurs in a home. A point should be made to secure the home as safely and reasonably as possible and contact a qualified restoration company to further secure the residence. Aside from having a physical presence on the property which drastically reduces the chance that someone will attempt to enter the residence, they can board up any windows, doors, or openings used to typically gain access to the property.
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Once these vital steps have been resolved, the restoration company will assess the area for damage, hazards, and potentially walk you through the property to explain what next steps need to be taken in order to restore your home to its previous condition.
It may feel overwhelming, and rightfully so. But try and break things down into smaller, more manageable pieces. Once you’ve got the safety of you and your family under control, starting the next steps towards recovery is a great next move. After that, make sure the house is safe from further damage and loss, and have the experts come and take a look to start the process of recovery and restoration.
If that’s the step that you’re in now, or even if you just had more questions about the process, give RestoPros a call today with any questions, concerns, or if you’d like to set up an appointment to get on the road to restoration!