It is hard to believe that people we didn't even know would come and rescue us on the worst day of our homeowner lives. Less than six months in our home the city's mistake that caused over 5000 gallons of other peoples raw sewage to back up into our basement was a nightmare until about an hour after you, Steven and Mike arrived. It became obvious very quickly why the city contracts you to resolve these situations for them. There are not enough words,

Tom and Tina F. Cincinnati, Ohio

My husband John and I want to sincerely thank OVR for their excellent and very fair service. Working with Steve and Mike was a very positive experience and OVR Should be very proud to have them working for the company. Steve and Mike followed through with everything they indicated they would do and were courteous with our time being prompt. I can't say enough about our satisfaction.

John and Paula K, Liberty Twp, Ohio

When the Insurance Company called you to our home in West Chester, I had my doubts, and was not sure what to expect. We had a frozen water pipe inside and approximately 80,000 gallons went thru the first and second floors to all areas of the house. When your company arrived and began work, I asked questions as your employees working on drying out my home and were helpful in answering these concerns. With your arrival came more questions and it became clear to me that you had done this before, and are very good at it. Please except my sincere thanks with this letter and consider me a sold customer on your process.

Steven J. Loveland, Ohio

Ok, you're right and the hardwood floor guy, insurance adjuster and myself were all wrong. Hardwood floors can be dried. The 5 days your equipment was here was noisy and distractive; however it beats the 3 months it would have taken to get the new floors shipped in and replaced. Not to mention the 10 days we would have been in a hotel having them ripped out and reinstalled. Please show our pictures to anyone who doubts you and feel free to have them give me a call.

James J, Seafort, VA

The recent floods in Colorado have gotten many Americans thinking about what they can do to raise flood awareness and to better prepare for the possibility of a flood. We hope you find our blog useful in raising both flood awareness and water damage prevention awareness.

Hundreds of thousands of American live in what FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Association) calls the “floodplain,” or, the areas that are prone to flood hazards. Please check FEMA’s website for a map of your area, and to see if you’re in a floodplain. These Americans have a much higher possibility of suffering bodily injury and property damage from a flood. If Americans living in the floodplain don’t carry specialized flood insurance, a flood can easily devastate a family for generations to come in water damage costs. Keep in mind that floods are not covered by Homeowner’s Insurance – flood insurance is a special type of insurance separate from Homeowner’s. Taking the steps to find and buy flood insurance is of the utmost importance, especially if you’re near a large body of water. It’s a great step toward minimizing your potential water damage losses.

Flood Damage Awareness

It’s extremely important to pay attention to the news and emergency broadcasts at all times, even if you are not located in the floodplain. Floods and other natural disasters can strike anywhere. Keep a battery-powered radio and a list of the local radio stations that send out flood alerts. Remember, it’s better to be safe than sorry.

If a flood occurs, evacuate to the designated area following the emergency broadcast. Always take emergency broadcasts seriously.

Loss Prevention tips:

Keep an eye on the weather and local stream flows. The local stream flow can be found here. Most parts of the US have a season where flash floods are more likely to occur.
Store valuables high. Store them in the attic or on the top floor if you don’t have an attic.
Create an emergency action plan. Having an emergency plan memorized will allow you to act faster.
Have a neighbor lined up to help you move and store valuables should time allow.
Dealing With Water Damage

If the home can be salvaged, it’s important to call a water damage restoration specialist as soon as possible. Ohio Valley Restoration is available for emergency calls, whether it’s after a flood has occurred or if it’s for a burst pipe. We provide carpet cleaning and carpet restoration, hardwood drying, water removal, sewage cleanup, mold removal and more, for both residential homeowners and commercial businesses. You can reach us at 513-874-7478. We are available for emergency service.

If you live someplace prone to flooding, tropical storms, hurricane and other water-intensive disasters, it’s important to obtain emergency flood insurance. Emergency flood insurance is a customized type of insurance based on the value of your home and belongings and your individualized coverage needs, and can save you if a disaster were to strike. Unfortunately, though, the insurance isn’t available in every city, you can’t just purchase it outright, and homeowner’s insurance doesn’t cover you if you suffer a flood. We’ll go over how to obtain emergency flood insurance in this article (if applicable), and how it works.

In 1968, Congress created the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). This program made it so homeowners, business owners and renters can elect to be covered by the NFIP if their community partakes in the program. Communities that participate must enforce program rules that meet or exceed FEMA requirements. The ordinances are put in place to reduce the hazards and risk of flooding and to keep the community as safe as humanly possible.

But should you purchase emergency flood insurance? If you’re not sure, ask yourself these questions:

Do you live near a large body of water?
Is the area you live in prone to things such as hurricanes?
o Floods?
o Excessive rain?
o Tropical storms?

If you answered “yes” to any of the above, you should consider buying emergency flood insurance if your community takes part in the NFIP program. You would need to purchase it through a private insurance agency. FEMA works with around 90 private insurance agencies.

The insurance can be purchased through agencies that offer it, through their property & casualty insurance department. The rate will depend on factors such as the date your home was built and its type of construction. There may be other factors, depending on the agency, such as a quantified “risk factor” of your home, office building, etc.

For more information, visit the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s website: http://www.fema.gov/national-flood-insurance-program

For a list of insurance agencies with “write your own insurance” policies, go here: http://www.fema.gov/wyo_company