What Structural Damages Can Exist After a Downtown Manhattan Housefire?

8/5/2020 (Permalink)

Give our SERVPRO of Alphabet City/Downtown Manhattan team a call today at (646) 665-4195.

There are numerous repairs necessary after a fire moves through your Downtown Manhattan property, and our contractors and restoration professionals can help.

Structure fires and repairs or reconstruction often go hand in hand for Downtown Manhattan homes or businesses. The hotter the fire, the more rapidly it can spread through the structure and completely combust materials and structural elements in its path. Modern construction materials can burn more quickly and more completely than older homes. Depending on multiple factors, the amount of reconstruction or repair required for your emergency is unique.

Since our technicians and contractors first arrive, we are focused on each step necessary to address fire damage in Downtown Manhattan residences. A careful evaluation of the property conditions upon arrival can help determine the steps required to provide a safe work environment for our responding technicians beginning mitigation work. Often, homeowners do not appreciate the full extent of structural damage because the entire property appears in disarray. Our SERVPRO team can help identify corrective actions and replacements necessary to make these fire losses “Like it never even happened.”

What Are Emergency Services?

Emergency services can be one of the most vital efforts that our SERVPRO team initiates when we first arrive at a damaged property. These efforts often precede mitigation and even job scoping to better protect the property from rapidly migrating conditions. Some of these initial tasks include:

    •    Temporary Construction Solutions - Openings in the exterior of your house can leave the property vulnerable to water penetration, animals, and other compromising situations. Our contractors work to seal up these breaches temporarily until full scale build back can occur.
    •    Debris Removal - The presence of debris and partially combusted materials can amplify conditions like lingering odors, smoke residues, and other harmful contaminants circulating in the environment.
    •    Air Quality Control - Particles moving throughout the damaged area can be harmful to those directly exposed without the appropriate personal protective equipment. Through the use of air scrubbers and other filtration tools, we can lower these risks.

How Can Our Contractors Contend with Man-Made Openings?

Firefighting efforts can often be more challenging than first responders expect upon arrival. These challenges require fast and direct solutions, where the structural boundaries hindering extinguishment might require removal. Man-made openings often occur through the roof or wall systems of the house, where the worst of the fire happens, to ensure that the water used for extinguishment reaches where it should. Once extinguishment completes, these openings must get addressed quickly to prevent conditions like flooding or animal infestations from happening. Our contractors can work rapidly on these temporary construction solutions, which include:

    •    Tarping
    •    Board Up
    •    Containment

Is Controlled Demolition Beneficial?

In addition to the full-scale build back that we can offer our customers after a house fire, controlled demolition is another beneficial service. Our licensed residential contractors can identify and remove overly damaged portions of exposed materials to prevent collapse or other safety concerns. Because controlled demolition is such a common element to the recovery of a property after a fire loss, it is essential to understand how this initial action by our contractors can benefit your property and the costs and time invested in restoration.

    •    Access to Damaged Areas – One of the immediate advantages of removing damaged portions of building materials is access to structural cavities where other concerns might exist, such as pooling water.
    •    Removing Compromised Materials – Many materials become partially damaged by the path of fire throughout the house, but do not combust entirely. These partially damaged surfaces can intensify odors and soot concerns in the house until the materials get removed, and the environmental hazards get addressed.
    •    Preventing Structural Hazards – Substantial structural concerns might not be immediately apparent in your house after a fire, especially with so many surfaces covered in smoke residues and debris present throughout the property. Controlled demolition focuses on areas that could become potential problems or hazards to those in the immediate area.

When Does Full-Scale Reconstruction Occur?

While much of the repairs and reconstruction work occurs during the mitigation phases, the final touches to your house often require rebuilding or replacing removed materials to return to preloss condition. Because we have in-house contractors that can respond along with our technicians, the transition from mitigation to reconstruction as a seamless process. Our customers do not wait for scheduling conflicts often encountered by pursuing subcontractors for construction after a fire loss.

With fires being the second most common call out that our restoration professionals address throughout the year, our response and experience in these matters can save our customers time and money. Give our SERVPRO of Alphabet City/Downtown Manhattan team a call today at (646) 665-4195.