What to Do and What Not to Do After a Home Fire

So that you make no mistakes after your home has been damaged by fire, Water Mold Fire Restoration is providing this list of what to do and what not to do after a home fire. Experiencing a fire in your home can unsettle anybody. It’s a very frightening and devastating event. It’s absolutely imperative that you do certain things not do others immediately after a fire. This will not only protect you and your family, but these things will also protect your home as well.

Things To Do After A Home Fire

We will start by listing several actions that you should undertake as soon as possible once the fire is out:

Consult With the Firefighters

First and foremost, consult with your fire department before you reenter your home. It doesn’t matter if your home looks safe to enter. The only thing you can trust is their direct words. Until they give you explicit permission, simply stand back and watch them do their work.

Realize also that they might not even allow you to re-enter. In some cases, a home becomes so damaged that it also becomes uninhabitable. You might want to search through your belongings, however, it is not worth the risk of personal injury.

Contact Relevant Parties

The important people and organizations that you should contact:

• Family Members: you need to let your family members and close friends know what occurred.
• Insurance Company: you need to contact your insurance company. You should start the claim’s process right away. Remember to also keep a copy of every single receipt you accumulate during the restoration process for insurance purposes, including any housing and food costs accumulated while you are out of your home.
• Landlord: if you are renting, then you need to contact the homeowner or landlord. This person willcontact his or her own insurance company. If you have renters insurance, you should contact them concerning your personal possessions.
• American Red Cross: You may want to contact American Red Cross. The Red Cross provide services to victims of a house fire.

Get A Fire Report

You'll need to get a copy of the official “fire report” for insurance purposes. It covers all aspects of the fire, i.e., its intensity, the damage it caused, the time it took to extinguish it, etc.

Note: you will likely not be able to get a copy of it on the same day of the fire. You may need to contact the fire department a day or two later.

Contact Water Mold Fire Restoration for Emergency Board Up

You need to secure your property. If your doors are non-functional and several windows have been broken out, boarding up your property needs to be done. This should be done regardless of the amount of damage done to your home. You need to preserve evidence, as well as any remaining undamaged possessions.

At this point you need to consider the cleanup process. Regardless of the amount of damage done by the fire, you need to consult with Water Mold Fire Restoration’s fire and smoke removal professionals. Performing fire cleanup is not easy. There are many things to consider:

• Soot Damage
• Smoke Damage
• Fire Damage
• Water Damage
• Extinguished Residue

The longer you wait, the worse the damage can get. Smoke and soot continue to do damage even after the fire is out. Add to the problem the amount of water used to extinguish the fire; the water is also adding to the damage.

Things To NOT Do After A Home Fire

While this is going to be a smaller list, it will certainly not be any less important!

• Don't rush into cleaning up. Using improper cleaning techniques can make the damage worse.
• Avoid eating any canned, packaged, or previously opened food/beverage items that were inside during the fire. The heat may have activated the bacteria inside them. Your best bet is to throw them away.
• Avoid restoring electrical service if it has been disconnected until your home's wiring can be checked out. Turning the power back on could restart the fire.

Last but not least, avoid panic. You can recover from a fire, but you must stay calm and get the remediation work started as soon as possible. Water Mold Fire Restoration can be on the scene as soon as the fire is out. Our emergency crews are able to respond to home and business fires 24 hours a day. Contact us at 800-905- 0277 or email us at help@watermoldfire.net.