The Dangers Of School Flood Damage

By Author: Leo Nov
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Floods are one of the most widely broadcasted events in the news. We've seen headlines made on floods caused by Katrina, Ike and Wilma. A lesser known but equally harrowing part of this is the havoc caused by floods on schools.

Within 2009, for example, Austell, Georgia was hit by severe flooding, causing permanent damage to its schools, which had to be shut down. Students had to be sent to different states to study while buildings were rebuilt. More international examples include the floods in Cumbria, England and Manila, Philippines, which caused billion dollar losses in textbooks and supplies.

What are the effects of school flood damage? We are not only talking about structure and supplies. More importantly, hours and days lost for learning. Not to mention the inconveniences experienced by affected school personnel and students.

Floods are not only strong when present, but can also be dangerous even after they have been cleaned up. Here are things to look into.

Presence of danger

Water causes wood to bend. A weak building structure can cause it to collapse eventually, especially when ...
... aggravated by other disasters like earthquakes or hurricanes. This is dangerous to a school, which can have thousands of students, faculty and staff inside. The best remedy is to make annual checks to make sure that the structure is sound.

Costs

Whether for major or minor flood damages, rebuilding costs can reach up to thousands of dollars. Katrina alone cost the US $50 billion for public infrastructure. Proactive checks can prevent these costs from ballooning.

Displacement

More severe floods can cause displacement, like in the case of Georgia. Displacement takes time, money and stress not only on educators and staff and on parents but also on schoolchildren.

Delay in school years

In school flood damage, schools need to be shut down for repairs. This can take weeks or months, delaying the education your child needs to progress. While displacement can provide temporary solution, some time had been lost still.

All of these do not need to happen as long as proper preparation and maintenance is made, in cooperation with the government, school board and parents.
Leo Nov is an editorial staff member of RestorationSOS.com, a leading service provider for water damage cleanups. To learn more about water damage school and water removal school, visit RestorationSOS.com.