Ice storm damage: what to do before, during and after

What freezing rain does

Freezing rain falls as liquid and freezes on contact. A long event coats every branch, wire and roof with ice. The weight brings down limbs, whole trees, power lines and sometimes poles, and outages can last for days in cold weather. Ontario has had several: the 1998 storm in the east of the province, the December 2013 storm across the Greater Toronto Area, and others since.

The damage to homes comes in three ways: falling trees and ice, the long power cut that follows, and water when things thaw.

Before the storm

When freezing rain is forecast:

• Charge phones and power banks
• Have flashlights and batteries. Avoid candles.
• Store drinking water, and fill the bath for flushing if you are on a well
• Have food that needs no cooking, and a manual can opener
• Fill prescriptions
• Fuel the vehicle and move it away from trees
• Bring in or tie down loose outdoor items
• Test the sump pump backup
• Check that carbon monoxide and smoke alarms have working batteries
• Know how to shut off your water, and where the drain valves are

During the storm

Stay inside. Branches and sheets of ice fall without warning.

Treat every downed wire as live. Stay at least ten metres back, further if the ground is wet, and keep others away. Report it to your electricity distributor, and call 911 if there is immediate danger.

Do not touch a tree or fence in contact with a line.

Carbon monoxide kills in outages. Never use a generator, barbecue, camp stove or outdoor heater indoors, in a garage or near a window. Run generators outside, well away from doors, windows and vents.

Never connect a generator to the house wiring without a properly installed transfer switch. Back-feeding endangers line workers and can destroy your equipment.

Use fireplaces and wood stoves only if they have been maintained.

Keep fridge and freezer doors shut.

Protecting the house in a long outage

A house without heat cools to freezing in a day or two in mid-winter, faster if it is poorly insulated.

While the house is still above freezing

• Close doors to unused rooms and gather in one
• Hang blankets over windows and doorways
• Open cabinet doors under sinks on outside walls
• Let taps drip slightly if you still have water pressure and the drains are working

If the house is going to freeze

• Shut off the main water valve
• Open all taps, starting at the top floor, and drain the system from the lowest tap or drain valve
• Flush toilets and remove as much remaining water as you can
• Pour plumbing antifreeze, the non-toxic kind made for the purpose, into toilet bowls and drain traps
• Switch off the water heater at the breaker or set gas to pilot before draining it
• Hot water heating systems need a professional to protect

If you leave to stay elsewhere, do this before you go, and tell your insurer if the house will be empty for more than a few days.

The sump pump. If meltwater is arriving and the pump has no power, the pit will overflow. A battery backup or a generator keeps it running. Otherwise, move things off the basement floor.

Trees on the house

• Get everyone out of the affected part of the building
• If a tree has brought down the service line, stay away and call your electricity distributor
• Call 911 if anyone is hurt or trapped, or if there is fire, a gas smell or structural collapse
• Do not climb onto an icy roof or try to cut a large limb off the house yourself
• Photograph the damage
• Arrange for the tree to be removed and the roof covered. See tree fell on house.

Ice-loaded limbs that have not yet fallen remain dangerous for days. Keep out from under them.

When the power comes back

• Check that the main breaker is on and reset tripped breakers once
• If the service mast or meter base was pulled away from the house, an electrician must repair it and the Electrical Safety Authority must approve it before the utility will reconnect
• Bring the heat back up gradually
• Turn the water on slowly and watch for leaks. Pipes that froze may have split and will only show it once they thaw. Know where the shut-off is before you open it.
• Check the basement, ceilings and inside cabinets over the next day
• Discard refrigerated food that has been above 4 degrees Celsius for more than about two hours. A full freezer keeps food frozen for roughly two days if the door stays shut.
• Refill and restart the water heater properly

The thaw

• Ice dams. Ice at the eaves backs meltwater up under the shingles. Stains appear at the top of outside walls and at ceilings. See ice dam removal.
• Roof and eavestrough damage from the weight of ice or from falling branches shows up as leaks.
• Burst pipes announce themselves.
• Meltwater round the foundation.

Do not chip ice from the roof or eavestroughs with tools. It damages the shingles.

Cleanup and repair

• Tarp roof damage and board openings
• Extract water and start drying within a day or two
• Remove wet insulation and saturated drywall
• Have damaged electrical equipment checked
• Have trees assessed by an arborist. Split and hanging limbs need professional removal.

Insurance

• Falling trees, ice and the weight of ice and snow are generally covered perils for damage to the building.
• Tree removal is generally covered only where the tree damaged an insured structure.
• Burst pipes are commonly covered, but many policies have conditions if you were away from the home for more than a few days in the heating season.
• Food spoilage may be covered up to a small limit.
• Additional living expenses generally apply only if an insured loss made the home unfit to live in, or a civil authority ordered you out. A power cut by itself often does not qualify. Ask your insurer.
• Vehicles damaged by falling ice or trees are covered under comprehensive auto insurance.

Photograph everything, keep receipts for emergency work and report promptly. Adjusters are stretched after a regional storm, so expect delays, and do not wait for an inspection before protecting the property.

More: storm damage restoration.