Flooding hot topic at Rotary

Flood water removal and drying, flood insurance and flooding’s impact on farming were hot topics at September Ville Platte Rotary Club meetings.
Rotary member and September 27 Rotary speaker Nicole Wenger, co-owner of DryMax Water and Fire Restoration said, “Since it was my turn to have a speaker and there was so much going on about floods, I thought it would be a good time to talk about boots on the ground and what we are seeing and how is it progessing.”
Wenger said that the Saturday of the flood, she and her husband, who live in the Lafayette area, could not leave their home, and they became concerned about the Ville Platte location of their business, located at 707 West LaSalle Street.
“We pulled up the security cameras, and the floor was very shiny,” she said. 
“Our flood is not normally that shiny.”
Wenger continued, “You plan for it as a disater company, but natural disasters are not what we do every day. It’s mostly water heater breaks, A/C, you know, those normal disasters.”
Wenger said many of those that experienced water damage during the flood did not have flood insurance, and she and her staff spent time coaching others on do-it-yourself restoration, how to get the ball rolling and how to save money on flood repairs.
“It’s under control, but it’s still devasting,” Wenger said. “So many homes got flooded, but they were gutted and they are doing the natural drying method. They did not have the funds to get dehumidifiers and fans, so they are leaving things open and going with that approach.
“But their home is still not put together. There is no insulation, the A/C is running constantly. There is no sheet rock. Their cabinets are out. It is a daunting task what they are up against.”
The company has teamed with the Love Acadiana organization to help assist those whose homes were flooded. The company is dontating one to two days a week to doing dry certificates. A team or team members will go to a structure and certify that it is dry so that mold will not grow and reconstruction work can begin.
Wenger said that in the last few weeks, the company has experienced a large shift from drying calls to mold calls.
“Building materials did not dry out and people are experiencing mold where they have never had mold before,” Wenger said.
Wenger said that even people with raised homes that did not have water inside their homes are having problems with buckling walls and floors.
She added, “The homes experienced so much moisture, it is wicking up through their building materials on the inside of their homes.
Wenger suggested having a disaster plan for homes and offices.
“We get a lot of calls, just imagine the sprinkler system malfunction in a huge office complex and there are computers everywhere,” Wenger said. “They call, they are almost screaming they are so frantic because water is coming down on very expensive computers.
“In order find us, they have to Google us, and by the time they find us on Google with the other service prodivers, vet us and ask questions to find out who is insured and all their certifications, you have wasted too much time which will cost thousands of dollars, so you cannot afford a lost minute.”
Rotarian and State Farm Insurance Agent Eric Gil was the guest speaker on September 13. Gil discussed flood insurance.
Rene Simon with the Louisiana Department of Agriculture was the guest speaker on September 20. Simon spoke about the August flooding’s impact on the state’s agriculture industry in Evangeline Parish.