{"id":3273,"date":"2024-09-04T17:23:49","date_gmt":"2024-09-04T17:23:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/?p=3273"},"modified":"2026-02-20T13:20:24","modified_gmt":"2026-02-20T18:20:24","slug":"basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/","title":{"rendered":"Basic Guidelines When Disaster Strikes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1275\" src=\"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/08\/Burn-Building-MCC.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2938\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/08\/Burn-Building-MCC.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/08\/Burn-Building-MCC-300x199.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/08\/Burn-Building-MCC-1024x680.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/08\/Burn-Building-MCC-768x510.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/08\/Burn-Building-MCC-452x300.jpg 452w, https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/08\/Burn-Building-MCC-200x133.jpg 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong><mark style=\"background-color:#ffffff\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">THIS IS A DISASTER &#8211; WHAT NOW?<\/mark><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>There are simple steps that can be taken to limit the damage to your business or property<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong><mark style=\"background-color:#ffffff\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">BASIC GUIDELINES<\/mark><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The basic actions you take may depend on different factors (cause and condition) but there are some general rules that can be applied to almost all types of damage:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Life safety issues should always be addressed first.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Shore up, secure and\/or evacuate all areas in danger of collapse.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Secure the scene to prevent unauthorized entry.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Install protection barriers or secondary containment systems to prevent pollutants from flowing into drains or absorbing into<br>the soil.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Switch off all equipment immediately. Do not reconnect them, even for test purposes, until it is safe.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Shut down all systems &#8211; power, water, gas, compressed air supply and air conditioning. Do not reconnect them until it is safe.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Document damage with photographs and written records.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Notify your insurance company<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"separators-custom-box  \"  >\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\t            <div class=\"cta_title\"\n\t\t\t\t            >Learn more about what you can do when disaster strikes.<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t            <a href=\"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/08\/US-BELFOR-DISASTER-BASICS.pdf\"\n\t\t\t\t target=\"_blank\"               style=\"background-color:;\"\n               class=\"c-btn -normal -inverted has-icon icon-right \"\n            >\n                <div class=\"label-up\"\n                                >\n                    <span class=\"c-btn__txt\">Download Brochure<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-btn__ico\"><svg width=\"30\" height=\"30\" class=\"icon icon-lib-icon-arrow4 \" aria-hidden=\"true\" role=\"img\"><use xlink:href=\"#lib-icon-arrow4\"><\/use><\/svg><\/span>\n                <\/div>\n                <div class=\"label-up\">\n                    <span class=\"c-btn__txt\">Download Brochure<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-btn__ico\"><svg width=\"30\" height=\"30\" class=\"icon icon-lib-icon-arrow4 \" aria-hidden=\"true\" role=\"img\"><use xlink:href=\"#lib-icon-arrow4\"><\/use><\/svg><\/span>\n                <\/div>\n            <\/a>\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>THIS IS A DISASTER &#8211; WHAT NOW? There are simple steps that can be taken to limit the damage to your business or property BASIC GUIDELINES The basic actions you take may depend on different factors (cause and condition) but there are some general rules that can be applied to almost all types of damage:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":5217,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3273","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-guides-brochures"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Basic Guidelines to Know When Disaster Strikes<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Learn basic guidelines to follow when disaster strikes, helping protect people, property, and recovery timelines.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Basic Guidelines to Know When Disaster Strikes\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Learn basic guidelines to follow when disaster strikes, helping protect people, property, and recovery timelines.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"BELFOR Property Restoration - USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-09-04T17:23:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-02-20T18:20:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/09\/US-BELFOR-DISASTER-BASICS.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"300\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"inaya\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"inaya\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/resources\\\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/resources\\\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"inaya\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/ba7ce491f72fb4b5eedd2760d18830aa\"},\"headline\":\"Basic Guidelines When Disaster Strikes\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-09-04T17:23:49+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-20T18:20:24+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/resources\\\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":155,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/resources\\\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2024\\\/09\\\/US-BELFOR-DISASTER-BASICS.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Guides &amp; Brochures\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/resources\\\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/resources\\\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\\\/\",\"name\":\"Basic Guidelines to Know When Disaster Strikes\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/resources\\\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/resources\\\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2024\\\/09\\\/US-BELFOR-DISASTER-BASICS.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-09-04T17:23:49+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-20T18:20:24+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/ba7ce491f72fb4b5eedd2760d18830aa\"},\"description\":\"Learn basic guidelines to follow when disaster strikes, helping protect people, property, and recovery timelines.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/resources\\\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/resources\\\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/resources\\\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2024\\\/09\\\/US-BELFOR-DISASTER-BASICS.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2024\\\/09\\\/US-BELFOR-DISASTER-BASICS.jpg\",\"width\":400,\"height\":300},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/resources\\\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Basic Guidelines When Disaster Strikes\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/\",\"name\":\"BELFOR Property Restoration - USA\",\"description\":\"RESTORING MORE THAN PROPERTY\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.belfor.com\\\/us\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/ba7ce491f72fb4b5eedd2760d18830aa\",\"name\":\"inaya\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/70a2eaf202cb1c4cbdc08dbea4492885cd9a1abb1559023e118c48719c9f0908?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/70a2eaf202cb1c4cbdc08dbea4492885cd9a1abb1559023e118c48719c9f0908?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/70a2eaf202cb1c4cbdc08dbea4492885cd9a1abb1559023e118c48719c9f0908?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"inaya\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Basic Guidelines to Know When Disaster Strikes","description":"Learn basic guidelines to follow when disaster strikes, helping protect people, property, and recovery timelines.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Basic Guidelines to Know When Disaster Strikes","og_description":"Learn basic guidelines to follow when disaster strikes, helping protect people, property, and recovery timelines.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/","og_site_name":"BELFOR Property Restoration - USA","article_published_time":"2024-09-04T17:23:49+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-02-20T18:20:24+00:00","og_image":[{"width":400,"height":300,"url":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/09\/US-BELFOR-DISASTER-BASICS.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"inaya","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"inaya","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/"},"author":{"name":"inaya","@id":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/ba7ce491f72fb4b5eedd2760d18830aa"},"headline":"Basic Guidelines When Disaster Strikes","datePublished":"2024-09-04T17:23:49+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-20T18:20:24+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/"},"wordCount":155,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/09\/US-BELFOR-DISASTER-BASICS.jpg","articleSection":["Guides &amp; Brochures"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/","url":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/","name":"Basic Guidelines to Know When Disaster Strikes","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/09\/US-BELFOR-DISASTER-BASICS.jpg","datePublished":"2024-09-04T17:23:49+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-20T18:20:24+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/ba7ce491f72fb4b5eedd2760d18830aa"},"description":"Learn basic guidelines to follow when disaster strikes, helping protect people, property, and recovery timelines.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/09\/US-BELFOR-DISASTER-BASICS.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/09\/US-BELFOR-DISASTER-BASICS.jpg","width":400,"height":300},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/resources\/basic-guidelines-when-disaster-strikes\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Basic Guidelines When Disaster Strikes"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/","name":"BELFOR Property Restoration - USA","description":"RESTORING MORE THAN PROPERTY","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/ba7ce491f72fb4b5eedd2760d18830aa","name":"inaya","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/70a2eaf202cb1c4cbdc08dbea4492885cd9a1abb1559023e118c48719c9f0908?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/70a2eaf202cb1c4cbdc08dbea4492885cd9a1abb1559023e118c48719c9f0908?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/70a2eaf202cb1c4cbdc08dbea4492885cd9a1abb1559023e118c48719c9f0908?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"inaya"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3273","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/21"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3273"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3273\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6328,"href":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3273\/revisions\/6328"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5217"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3273"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3273"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.belfor.com\/us\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3273"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}