Appraisal Under the Flood Policy – John Minor – Appraiser, Umpire
The Appraisal Process in the National Flood Insurance Program works to resolve disputed property damage claims both residential and commercial after Hurricanes or other catastrophes. Insurers may compel appraisal or…
Forensic Engineering – What does one look for in a forensic report?
What is a Forensic Engineering report? Why do I need one on hurricane damaged building claims? Forensics, as I have seen it play in the field over the last two decades…
Six Months After Hurricane Michael – We Were There and Something was Different About This Late in the Season Storm – John Minor CFM
The timing was all wrong — we do not get storms this late in October but apparently no one told mother nature. I have been doing this storm thing as…
Hurricane Florence – By the numbers – this mid Atlantic hurricane could have been much worse – John Minor CFM
Although Hurricane Florence’s and her rainfall is gone, the destruction it has caused isn’t over yet. Not even close… North Carolina farms lost an estimated 5,500 pigs and 3.4 million…
The Atlantic Hurricane Season and Why Predictions Are Uncertain
The Atlantic storm season began this year on June 1 2016, and the coastal residents in Mexico, the Caribbean Islands and United States are wary of what is about to…
Hurricane Harvey & Back: 8 Days in August – My experience John Minor Hurricane Researcher Flood Plain Manager
Hurricane Harvey and John Minor’s Trek In 2017, people along the Texas Gulf coast and I were preparing themselves for what was to be the most destructive natural disaster in…
City Council Adopts Stricter Development Rules For Houston’s Floodplains
Several months after Hurricane Harvey’s destructive floods that affected thousands of houses in Southeast Texas, and the widespread flooding Hurricane Harvey unleashed last year, the Houston City Council has approved…
Mitigation: How It Can Save Lives, Property and Taxpayer Money – My view from the field
Mitigation Planning – can significantly reduce the damage caused by storms as well as decrease the money and heartache spent post storm both of which are precious. The states that…
Global Warming Drowns Hot Sauce Maker
And whether it’s manmade or not, the water is rising in the Delta… For more than a century, gumbo lovers and oyster aficionados all over the world have enjoyed their…
What is the 50% Rule or "Substantial Damage" as it relates my wind and flood damaged residence – John Minor CGC, CFM
Whether your structure has been ‘substantially’ damaged or not is determined by a number of factors. The first time many people will encounter this rule is when they receive damage…
Barker Reservoir, Houston, & What They Should Have Known and When — Floodplain Management
Around 25 years ago, Charles Glen Crocker realized that the footprint at the Barker Reservoir was larger than the area under the government control and ownership, hence placing the homeowners…
How does my Hurricane Harvey donation help the real people in Houston, Beaumont and Corpus Christi?
The American Red Cross, a name synonymous with disaster aid and help for those dealing with natural disasters and catastrophes is, post-Katrina now marred with another feeling by the public….
Is it Time to Update Our National Flood Insurance Program?
Is it Time to Update Our National Flood Insurance Program? The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) is up for reauthorization and there are always many requested changes before it is done….
Recollections from my time in Hurricane Harvey – 4 day up the creek – John Minor – Flood Plain Manager
The saying goes, “not all heroes wear capes.” Some of them wear khakis, collars and show up when the wolf growls at the door. Our very own John Minor here…
Port of Pensacola – Thermal Imaging Inspections for GE following Hurricane Ivan by Complete
Following Hurricane Ivan in 2004 Complete was hired by GE to inspect at the Port of Pensacola. This large-scale power generator had been flooded and then restored. In our inspection…
Hurricane Hermine Impacts Florida's Big Bend – We were there – John Minor CFM
It’s that time of year again summer and early fall here in 2016 in the Gulf of Mexico, where systems of thunderstorms begin to cluster and organize, and begin to…
Historic Southeastern Louisiana Flooding
Baton Rouge, LA If you live in southeastern Louisiana, a fishing boat is quite the useful asset right about now. Following this historic and tragic flooding event, locals continue to…
Houston Floods…again
Flooding is a form of natural disaster that affects many parts of the country regularly, as I know very well having worked hundreds of flood claims throughout, and few of…