by Shane Henson — February 11, 2013—As business and home owners affected by Hurricane Sandy and Irene continue to recover, the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) has released guidance focused on key rebuilding issues to help those needing to repair or rebuild.
“While everyone is anxious to get back into their homes or resume business operations as quickly as possible, it is critical that people also focus on how to prevent damage and destruction from the next big storm, because there will be another one,” said Julie Rochman, IBHS president and CEO. “Taking actions based on the building science guidance from IBHS will help ensure properties are better able to withstand the next extreme weather event.”
IBHS says its new paper, titled Rebuilding and Repairing Safer and Stronger Post-Sandy, focuses on and provides guidance on four key questions residents and business owners need to consider:
- Is your roof strong enough?
- Is the building tied together properly so it can stand up to extreme winds?
- Are doors and windows protected?
- Is the building properly elevated to avoid flooding?
IBHS’ second paper, Mitigation Lessons from Sandy: How to Protect Your Business from the Next Storm, summarizes business protection lessons from Sandy, and outlines how to embrace these lessons to ensure properties and operations are better prepared to withstand the next major storm.
Finally, in Status of Building Codes in New Jersey and New York: The Future of Resilience in a Post-Sandy Environment, IBHS examines current building codes and standards in New York and New Jersey, and provides critical information and suggestions to help increase building resilience for future storms.
