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How To Prepare Your Property for Tree Removal After a Hurricane
Hurricanes often bring heavy winds, rain, flooding, and destruction to the Tampa, Florida, area. Preparing for a hurricane is essential to ensure safety for you, your family, and your property. However, even with careful planning and preparation, trees can become uprooted or damaged during a storm.
Damaged or uprooted trees are dangerous, especially if they bring down electrical lines or cause extensive damage to your home. While you may be anxious to remove or have the damaged trees removed as quickly as possible, take steps to prepare yourself and your property before you have any trees removed.
Safety First
No matter how much damage the hurricane brings to your property or home, it's essential to take precautionary steps before trying to remove the trees yourself or using a professional tree service company.
Assess the Situation
Once it's safe to go outside, evaluate the safety situation first.
- Are any trees blocking your doorway?
- Do you notice any electrical wires lying down or on the tree?
- Are tree limbs or branches dangling down that could suddenly drop and cause injury?
Before going into your yard, evaluate the situation as best as possible. If you see any serious damage that could cause immediate danger, call emergency services so they can come and evaluate the seriousness of the situation and bring in experts to deal with any dangers.
If you are safe, but see electrical wires, contact your utility company immediately. Depending on the damage in the area, it may take a while before your utility company can assess the situation. Stay clear of the area until they have removed the tree.
Wear Protective Clothing
Protecting your safety is a priority. You don't want to run out of the house with flimsy footwear or your head and eyes unprotected. Before the storm hits, buy protective gear, such as a hard hat, safety goggles, work gloves, and sturdy boots, and have them easily accessible. After your primary assessment from inside your home, you can choose which pieces of safety gear to put on before inspecting your property for further damage outside.
Assess the Property for Damage
Once properly protected, carefully walk the property and assess it for tree damage. Look for downed power lines, unstable structures or outbuildings, and tree branches that can fall. Assume electrical lines are powered and avoid touching them or anything that's touching them, including standing water.
Prepare to Call Emergency Services
Keep your smartphone charged before the storm, and if possible, keep a portable battery charger handy to keep the phone charged in case of a power outage. Call emergency services if any part of your property feels dangerous, so they can turn the power off to electrical lines and remove them.
How To Prepare Your Property for Tree Removal
Whether you're going to manage the damaged tree cleanup or removal yourself or hire a local company to do the job, there are a few tasks you can perform to help expedite the process and make your property safe.
Remove Obstacles
Winds from a hurricane often blow debris and objects around. Before the tree care professionals arrive, or before you begin work on tree removal, remove objects that have blown into your yard, small branches, or tarps that may have become tangled. Removing any objects before the clean-up process starts can help prevent safety issues and allow the workers to tackle the job quickly and efficiently.
Drain or Remove Standing Water
If you're able to remove any standing water near the tree safely, do so. This will allow safe access to the tree to be removed. If you're unable to remove the water due to large amounts of flooding, you'll need to wait until the water recedes.
Document the Damage
Take pictures of the damage for insurance purposes. Contact your insurance company to understand how you are covered and the process for submitting a claim.
Hire a Professional Tree Removal Company
If you're unable to remove the tree yourself, contact a tree removal company once you've prepared your property. These professionals can safely and efficiently remove the tree. Some benefits of hiring a company vs DIY include:
Emergency Services
Many tree service companies provide emergency care, especially during natural disasters like hurricanes. These companies often have trained personnel available 24/7 to respond to life-threatening or dangerous damage caused by falling trees, branches, or limbs.
Professional Damage Assessment
Professional tree care companies or arborists understand the dynamics of tree damage and the extent of tree removal needed. They'll evaluate the stability of the tree and determine how to remove the damaged parts safely and without causing further damage to buildings.
Proper Tools and Equipment
Removing trees and branches from your property after a hurricane requires specialized tools that are often challenging to work with, including chainsaws, wood chippers, and other power-operated tools. Tree care technicians wear safety equipment, use ropes and rigging to access the tops of damaged trees, and often have boots with cleats for extra grip while maneuvering around the tree. In addition, these professionals know where to make cuts on the tree or limbs to drop them safely.
Disposal of Damaged Trees and Branches
Getting rid of damaged trees and branches ecologically and sustainably is essential for tree removal. Putting the damaged parts on the street can cause further damage if winds pick up or heavy rains come along and wash the debris down the road. Tree care companies will take the damaged parts and dispose of them in a facility that can accommodate tree parts.
Preventative Tips To Prevent Tree Damage Before a Hurricane
Caring for your trees before a storm can help prevent the uprooting of your trees or causing damage to the branches and limbs. Consider hiring a tree care service to perform preventative maintenance and care throughout the year and have them evaluate the condition of your trees well before a hurricane hits.
