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Fire & Water - Cleanup & Restoration

Storm Damage: What You Need to Know

9/19/2018 (Permalink)

Call 845-831-3600 for all your storm damage needs!

New York has seen its fair share of heavy rainfall in the past few months of summer 2018. Heavy rainfall and its accompanying floods are only some of the common types of damage from storms.

There are several major storm types:

  • Hurricanes
  • Tornadoes
  • Snow storms
  • Thunderstorms
  • Tropical storms

Under 100 miles to the Atlantic Ocean, Dutchess County is not unfamiliar with storms caused by severe tropical weather. Since Dutchess County is also so far north and close to the coast, it’s very likely that residents might experience each of these types of storms.

The fact remains that hurricanes can still cause damage far past the coast. New Yorkers remember just how widespread the damage from Hurricane Sandy was.

During a hurricane, most damage is caused by a combination of floods, storm surge, and wind.Storm surge: the most damage

As a hurricane approaches the shore, its powerful winds push extra water along with it. If the wind is powerful enough, it can push so much water shoreward that the water has nowhere to go but up and inland. This is storm surge: when the water level rises so far high above the predicted tide level and then surges inward toward land. The force of storm surge can be strong enough to destroy buildings and roads.

Floods: the most common

Floods tend to be incredibly common and seemingly inevitable in hurricanes. They are caused by heavy rainfall and by storm surge. A tropical storm can cause widespread heavy rain, as far out as 100 miles. This much surplus water cannot drain quickly enough or properly and thus causes flooding.

Wind: the speediest

Winds that come from hurricanes range from 74 mph to 155 mph. At this speed and force, winds can cause substantial damage. Not only can wind knock down trees, but it can also carry those trees as well as other debris and hurl them into buildings, vehicles, or anything else in its path.

The damage from storm surge, floods, and winds can be overwhelming to deal with. After a storm, call SERVPRO of Western Dutchess County to make it like it never even happened.

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