Storm tips (beyond storm chips)

We’re smack in the middle of the Atlantic hurricane season — and now in the time of year when storms escape southern waters and head towards Nova Scotia.

Dartmouth is no stranger to hurricanes. Juan and Dorian loom large in the memories of many residents, while long-time Darksiders might recall the substantial flooding triggered by Hurricane Beth in 1971. But with hotter seas and changing atmospheric patterns comes the risk that the next storm might bring heavier rains, stronger winds, and longer outages.

“We know that emergencies in Nova Scotia – like wildfires, floods, hurricanes and blizzards – are increasing in intensity and frequency,” Patricia Jreige, acting communications director for the Nova Scotia Department of Emergency Management, told the Post. “We are now in hurricane season, and storms can hit at any time.”

The province maintains an emergency and disaster preparedness website that offers a preparation checklist, power outage safety tips, and a list of the latest emergency alerts. The checklist gives advice for building an emergency kit, which Jreige described as the best way to prepare for the season. “After a storm, you could be without power or running water for some time, so Nova Scotians should be able to get by on their own for at least 72 hours following a storm.”

Key preparation items on the department’s list include an emergency plan, at least two litres of water per person per day, shelf-stable food (storm chips are shelf-stable, right?), and extra medication. Copies of important documents and cash in small bills (for when chip-reader machines are down) also make the list. The province’s safety tips address everything from simple tasks like charging your devices to life-saving reminders to cut power before entering a flooded basement and to never use barbecues, camp stoves, or generators indoors. (Halifax has a similar emergency management page that offers municipal severe weather alerts and emergency kit suggestions.)

Part of storm preparation is preventative maintenance, including something you may not tend to think about: trees. The province recommends that homeowners trim and remove damaged trees and limbs prior to a storm, which can prevent loss of life and property. Scott Lugar, a professional arborist and owner of Crown Arborists in Dartmouth, told the Post that a tree inspection can assess the risks related to storms — and offer paths to mitigating potential damage. Lugar suggests having a professional come to your property every few years to have a look at the trees and do regular pruning. An arborist can also install special cabling that can stabilize a problematic tree.

With that said, all trees carry risk in wind storms. “Even a perfect tree can be blown over in the right storm, a perfectly healthy tree that has healthy roots and is well maintained,” Lugar explained. However, trees with rot, poor unions, or bad structure are more likely to fail.

Lugar offers free inspections and said that preventative maintenance “can be a lot more cost effective” than letting a tree fall during a storm — which can not only fall on the house but could knock down power lines going to your home, further stymieing your recovery efforts. And after the storm, arborists face demand surges. “There’s only so many tree companies, right? So we do get a backlog of service,” he said. In spite of arborists working around the clock after storms, “sometimes you’re waiting a few days for any tree company to come by.”

Hurricanes can similarly stretch roofers beyond their capacity to respond to damage. Homeowners with shingle roofs may therefore want to consider buying a few items not on the provincial or municipal check lists: a large blue tarp, cap nails, long screws, and some spare lumber. Serious wind storms often blow shingles off of roofs. If any rain follows the storm, that rainwater may enter through damaged parts of the roof and begin to destroy a home’s ceilings, walls, and floors.

A tarp protects a damaged roof — and the house underneath it — following a hurricane. Credit: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Tarps, when properly and safely secured over damaged parts of a roof after the threat of wind has passed, can prevent that subsequent damage. Hundreds, even thousands of roofs in Florida can turn tarpaulin blue after a major storm rolls through. In fact, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers provides homeowners free tarps through “Operation Blue Roof” as part of American hurricane response. According to the operation’s website, this “protects property, reduces temporary housing costs, and allows residents to remain in their homes while recovering from the storm.”

Nova Scotia has no such program, but Jreige said the Nova Scotia Guard would be able to provide extra support to seniors, for example, during an emergency.

Finally, for hurricane tracking tools, the South Dartmouth Post weather page offers up-to-date information from the Canadian Hurricane Centre and the U.S. NOAA National Hurricane Center, as well as links to other helpful storm trackers.