Winter snowfall causes concerns for roof integrity

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – With the heavy winter snowfall, issues surrounding structural integrity of roofs have change into obvious.

For these involved with conserving a roof over their head, there are methods to verify for indicators that the snow could also be an excessive amount of, in response to Michelle Holland, proprietor of Holland Roofing in Anchorage.

“If you happen to see a sag within the eave, in case you can’t open or shut your doorways properly, if the home windows really feel caught — these are indicators that you simply is perhaps having a load problem in your constructing,” Holland stated.

The advice by Holland got here days after a roof collapse in a Taku neighborhood fitness center left one particular person useless and two others within the hospital. Whereas no trigger has been confirmed, authorities suspect a heavy snow load on prime of the constructing.

Alaska’s Information Source Meteorologist Joe Bartosik stated one essential motion property house owners can take is to dig into snow piles to look at the layers.

“We now have a dry fluffy layer right here, but when I dig down and get to love some massive chunks of ice in there — that every one occurs through the course of the season,” Bartosik defined whereas digging into an older pile of snow.

The large snowfall from December has remained because it fell, however following a heat January, the snow has compacted, including weight as extra snow lands on prime, making roof upkeep a much bigger precedence.

FEMA recommends that snow removing be completed by folks which can be certified, resulting from dangers which will happen.

“Lot of firms which can be skilled and handle it, they’ve the protection gear, they’ve the fitting sneakers, they’ve the fitting harnesses, they’ve the fitting gear to guarantee that they maintain their workers protected,” Holland stated.

For these planning to carry out their very own snow removing, there are steps to make it safer, equivalent to roof rakes, which can be utilized from floor degree, or shoveling snow with one other particular person close by in case there’s an emergency.

Copyright 2023 KTUU. All rights reserved.