A flood or fire can be devastating for your entire family, especially for your children. The disaster can have a huge impact on children’s physical and emotional health. If you experience either of these disasters, you should take safety steps that will keep them protected from illness and injury.
Here are some simple strategies to help your children stay safe and healthy after a fire or flood.
1. Keep Them Informed: As you work with the insurance company and the restoration company, it may be best for kids to stay at a friend’s home in a cleaner, healthier environment. This step is especially important if your home was affected by sewage or flood damage. The water could contain microorganisms that could cause your children to get sick.
However, you can help your kids feel less stressed by telling them what’s going on. Although you don’t need to tell your kids every detail, you can give them a basic overview of what to expect.
Tell your kids that you’re working with a restoration company. Explain to them that the restoration company is there to help you recover what you’ve lost.
If you need to live in a temporary location, you may not know how long you’ll be there. That uncertainty can be frustrating for both you and your children. Tell your children what needs to happen before you can return home. Let your children ask any questions and express any frustrations.
2. Teach Them Not to Touch or Move Belongings: Your children may want to grab their favorite toy, clothes, or comfort object from your damaged home, but taking these items isn’t safe. The belongings might be covered with mold, smoke residue, and other harmful substances. Plus, moving items could affect your insurance claim. Let your children know that they can’t touch anything until the restoration company tells you it’s okay to do so.
You and your children shouldn’t touch electronic appliances as well. If these appliances were affected by the fire or flood, your children should not turn them on until a restoration company inspects them.
Fortunately, restoration companies like FRSTeam can deliver a two-week supply of clothes and necessary items within 24 hours after the disaster. Working with a caring restoration company can ensure your children’s basic needs are met, which can help your children feel safer and more confident.
3. Let Them Know What Can and Can’t Be Saved: A restoration company will go through and determine what can and can’t be saved. Your children might feel sad if their toys, blankets, or clothes can’t be restored.
Explain to your children why certain items can’t be saved. Reasons might include:
- The items are already weak or damaged, and the restoration process could cause more damage.
- Their belongings were damaged too severely. Maybe they have shrunk or changed color.
- It would cost too much to replace them.
Let your child know when you can replace these possessions. Perhaps you could buy them a small toy now so they have something new to hold onto.
Fortunately, many items can be restored. Explain to your children that these items go with a restoration company. The company cleans them to remove smoke, residue, and mold. The process shouldn’t take long. FRSTeam can clean emergency items within 24 hours and all items within about two weeks.
Following these tips will help your children stay safe and healthy after a flood or fire. A restoration company will let you know when it’s safe for you and your children to return home. Pay attention to their advice about what can be saved and what can’t.
If you were in a flood or fire, count on us to help you through the recovery process. Keep reading our blog for more tips about disaster recovery.