Natural disasters are common, but a surprising number of people aren’t prepared to face them. People take different measures to protect themselves and their homes, but they often don’t focus on storm-related preparedness. To better ensure your home’s safety, learn which natural disasters are the most dangerous for your home and the protective measures you can take.
Uncontrollable Wildfires
A variety of things can cause wildfires, but the causes are usually lightning or reckless fire use and practices. Regardless of the cause, wildfires can spread and quickly get out of control when conditions are right. Some of the conditions that lead to these fires spreading include the following:
- Low humidity
- High winds
- High temperatures
- Little rainfall
These fires spread rapidly from forests and rural areas to cities when conditions are right. Wildland firefighters do their best to control and contain these fires, but in the interim, homes will likely burn.
There’s not much you can do to protect your home from wildfires outside of carefully choosing where you build. Outside of that, you and your family can create an emergency plan and have a go-pack of necessities and sentimental items to evacuate with.
Coastal Hurricanes
If you live on the coast or on an island, you’re no stranger to the occasional hurricane. These natural disasters come from low-pressure fronts moving through moisture-rich areas, creating the perfect environment for unstable air and thunderstorms to form. A big reason these natural disasters can be so disastrous is that they’re often slow-moving at first. This means the cities in their path get hit by massive amounts of wind and rain for a long time.
Weather like this is devastating, but you can lessen the impact of hurricane-related damage. The first and best thing you can do is build your home properly with all the necessary safety precautions. With a home already built, the best thing you can do is get high-quality insurance policies that will help you recover after the event.
Devastating Earthquakes
While seismologists can sometimes predict when an earthquake will happen, the time between detection and the quake itself is quite short. Earthquakes can vary in intensity, and some of the worst can be devastating. Though the quake itself may not be super dangerous, the aftershocks, weakened infrastructure, and potential tsunamis and flooding are bigger risks.
To protect your home from earthquakes, you should ensure solid construction and a strong foundation. Though your house will almost definitely still sustain damage from an earthquake, the overall structure should remain intact, helping you avoid starting from zero after the disaster.
These natural disasters are the most dangerous for your home, but that doesn’t mean you can’t do anything to protect yourself against them. There are general ways you can protect your home from natural disasters, along with having an evacuation plan in place. While you sometimes can’t do anything to protect your home, you can protect yourself and your family by getting out of harm’s way.
