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What’s Up With Thunderstorms? | SERVPRO® of South Nashville
7/9/2019 (Permalink)
Spring and summer are notorious for severe thunderstorms, which are a common occurrence. These thunderstorms also cause a chance for storm damage to property.
How much do you know about the different types of damage that can be caused by a thunderstorm?
Thunderstorms occur all over the world, and there are approximately 16 million thunderstorms yearly. Here in the United States, approximately 100,000 thunderstorms occur per year, with 10% of those are considered severe.
Moisture and rising unstable air—accompanied by a “lifting” mechanism caused by either hills or mountains that force air to rise, or where warm/cold or wet/dry air collide, causing a rising motion—are the necessary conditions for the formation of a thunderstorm.
Thunderstorms go through three stages during their life cycle: the developing stage, the mature stage and the dissipating stage. It is in the mature stage that hail, heavy rain, frequent lightning, strong winds and tornadoes are produced.
Thunderstorms present many dangerous conditions, but an even larger risk is the one posed by high winds causing flying debris.
A strong enough storm can see wind speeds of 57.5 mph or higher. Property damage can certainly come from winds that high.
You should make sure to secure any loose items in your yard, even those that seem harmless. Tree branches, gravel, mailboxes, fencing, lawn furniture, potted plants and garbage cans are all possible dangerous projectiles during a high wind situation.
Thunderstorms can create property damage in the following ways in addition to wind damage:
Lightning Fire is of course a concern with lightning, but it goes further than that. If lightning strikes your home, it can travel through the wiring and damage anything that is plugged into an outlet.
Tornadoes It is possible for tornadoes to reach upward of 200 mph, which means they are an especially dangerous and destructive force.
Hail Regardless of its size, hail is another damaging aspect of thunderstorms. In fact, the NOAA reports that damage costs can top $1 billion per year.
Flooding Heavy rains that accompany thunderstorms can create the opportunity for flash flooding. This can damage structures and nature alike.
If a thunderstorm has resulted in damage to your home or business, know that the team at SERVPRO® of South Nashville is available 24⁄7 to help with cleanup and restoration.