How To Reopen Your Business After Storm Damage

Trying to reopen your business after a storm has damaged your property can feel overwhelming. Whether you sustained damage due to a wildfire, tornado, thunderstorm, flooding, or other severe weather, there are steps you can take to get your business open again.

Plan Ahead For A Disaster

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) reports that nearly 40% of small businesses fail to reopen after being hit by a natural disaster. We don’t want you to be a part of that statistic!

The best way to make sure you’re ready to recover after severe weather hits is to have an emergency plan in place. If you don’t have one in place for your business, take time to sit down and create one as soon as possible.

Document Your Property

Check with your insurance company and make sure all of your property is documented and properly insured by them. 

When your business or property has been damaged by severe weather, take photos of the damage to share with your insurance company. If they already have a list of items and property, this will make it much easier to process your claim.

Back Up Financial Records

Most businesses keep their financial records online these days, which makes it much easier to recover if physical records have been damaged or destroyed. 

Make sure your financial and essential business records are regularly backed up to a secure server and you know how to access them.

Create An Emergency Plan For Employees

Do your employees know what to do if storm damage keeps them from being able to work? Sit down with your HR department and make sure a plan is in place to keep your staff informed and get them the information they need.

After The Storm: How To Safely Reopen

After a natural disaster or severe weather damages your business, follow your emergency plan and begin the process of repair and recovery.

Contact Your Insurance Company

The first call you make after discovering your business has been damaged by a storm should be to your insurance company. The faster you do this, the sooner you’ll be able to file a claim and get the doors open again.

Call Lake City Restoration

Need post-storm help fast? We’re here for you 24/7 with tarps, emergency structure drying services and board ups to keep your business as intact as possible. 

We can also help you navigate the insurance claim process and get your insurance company the information they need to process your claim.

Make Sure You And Your Staff Are Safe

It can be tempting to immediately enter your business and check the extent of the damage after a storm. However, this can be dangerous without the proper tools and training. 

Storms can bring down live power lines, break glass, spill chemicals, contaminate water, and rupture utility lines. It’s safer to rely on the professionals to inspect your business in the event of severe storm damage.

Start The Restoration Process

Depending on the extent of the damage, getting your business ready to reopen after storm damage can include:

• Roof repair
• Debris removal
• Tree removal
• Siding repair
• Structural drying
• Demolition and reconstruction
• Water damage cleanup
• Mold cleanup and remediation

Our certified restoration experts can help walk you through the steps necessary to get your business up and running again safely.

Lake City Restoration Is Here To Help

If your home or business has been damaged by severe weather, we’re here to help. When your business has been unexpectedly damaged, it can be hard to know where to start. 

We have the experience to help you navigate the restoration process and help you reopen your business after storm damage.