General
Recovery is about getting back to normal. This will depend on a lot of different factors, only some of which are your mitigation and preparation measures. What you are likely to see are a range of activities and services moving into the area to work on a range of issues.
Linking to the System
There are a number of different services that will come in to help. Utilities will work on restoring services to critical infrastructure (hospitals, fire stations, etc.). In this case, the Halifax Regional Municipality also appears to have started a vulnerable persons registry. If you fit the criteria for it, this is another way to cue those who are responding that you may need some assistance.
You may also see a number of volunteer organizations move into the area. They will generally send teams in to assess the situation first, gather information, and then move off for a bit while they bring in the resources to help. If you need assistance, you want to get in touch with these reconnaissance teams when they are in the area and be ready to tell them what kind of help you need. Some of these are listed on the resources page.
You will also want to be in touch with your insurance company as quickly as possible. Depending on the nature of the event, they may be facing a significant number of cases. Get in touch with them to at least get files open at the first opportunity if you feel like you’re going to need to make a claim.
Finally, there will be announcements on federal and provincial programs. Keep tabs on these announcements. Also, remember to be careful with the eligibility criteria and schedules they have.
Preparing and Information on Hand
If you have taken photographs of the property before the event, have “before and after” photographs on hand. These will help by showing that the damage was actually part of the event.
Lists of things that were damaged as a result of the event should be included. If you can find receipts for these, then those will be helpful. If not, look for comparable items that can replace the item. Make sure that you also get any warranty, installation, removal, and environmental costs included in the price. This list will help consolidate any claims.
Finally, keep track of costs that you may incur such as fuel for generators. These costs (talk to your insurance), may be claimable.
Remember that you should talk to your insurance adjuster about whether it is worth making a claim or not. If damages are relatively minor, you may want to forego the potential for a rate increase (and its overall costs) and simply pay for it. That being said, you may not be in a position to do that.
Working Through
Your first priority in recovery is determining if everyone is safe or if anyone needs assistance. This will depend on your personal circle. It could be yourself or could be your neighbours. Personally, I would check in with the neighbours to see if there’s anything there once you know you and your immediate family are not in danger or needing assistance.
The second element is conducting a quick survey of the property to see what’s actually happened. Again, safety is important at this point. Keep clear of power lines and the like. If they are down, simply report them and keep back not less than 10 meters or so.
Once you have identified your safety risks, make the list of things that need to happen on the property. These might be clean up tasks, repairs, or something else. Having that list will make it easier should you encounter one of the groups doing their initial assessments.
These initial assessment groups are not likely to perform the work immediately. They will start by taking information about the site, likely ask to take some pictures and other notes, and then head back to their command post where that information will be processed with all the other requests. This may take some time and not all groups go as quickly as others. What is happening in the background is that those groups will look at the total number and kinds of tasks in an area and then try to assign resources so that the right amount of the right kind of resources gets to your area. They will likely give you a contact number where you can reach their group for follow up.
There are always things that can be done in a perfect world to make things easier for these groups. That being said, keep an eye on your own safety and health if you start doing anything. You’re no good to anyone if you get hurt or sick in the middle of this so take an approach that you can manage. Some of the things you can do to make things easier include the following:
- If possible, identify an area off the road where a truck can pull off. This will help keep relief crews safe on one hand while also not creating more complications on routes that may be difficult to pass.
- If possible, have a list of utilities and their status up to date for when the team arrives. This includes electricity, water, septic (including sump pumps), gas, etc.
- If possible, identify any other issues that may have occurred since the initial team was there.
And again, as you work through this process, keep an eye on yours (and those around you) safety and health. It is going to be a rough time for people and things may be a little frayed. Most responders understand this and are prepared for people to be on edge, but ultimately keep in mind they are people (often volunteering) to help out.
Follow up
Keep a list of things to do better next time. This whole thing is a cycle and you don’t want to constantly have to deal with the same stresses. That list will help inform you of any future mitigation efforts or preparations you will want to make for next time.