Flood damage in Reading, PA is a direct effect of global climate change. This results in unpredictable weather as well as frequent occurrences of extreme weather conditions including flooding. The damage results in suffering across the whole population affected, but the elderly are particularly susceptible to this. This is why it’s important to find ways to protect them from the effects of extreme weather conditions. Part of doing this is understanding why they suffer so much from flood damage, and then taking action to make sure that they are protected from this and other weather adversity. Some of the reasons why the elderly suffer from flood damage more than any other population demographic include:
A Poor Understanding of Using Insurance to Sort the Damage
Flood damage is usually extensive and may need a lot of money to prepare. Individuals who live in areas prone to flood damage usually need large sums of money up front to even start the process. To avoid this, many retirees may have flood insurance, but don’t understand the details of how to use it. For instance, they may not know how to make a claim, the time frame within they can make such a claim and so forth. If your loved one is a retiree and has flood damage insurance, it would be wise for you to go through the details of the terms and conditions of the insurance policy so that they can know where they stand regarding this. One can also use this to get insight as to whether the flood insurance is ideal for them.
Having No Flood Insurance
Some retirees may not have flood insurance for whatever reason. The most common reason is believing that they don’t need this type of insurance. Today, it’s easy to get accurate weather forecasts that can extend to months into the future. If you believe that your loved one may be affected by flooding, it would be wise to get insurance for them well in advance. All should remember that one can’t apply for such a policy once the damage has been done, and then expect the insurance company to pay up.
Difficulty in Ability to Move from One Place to Another
Due to aging, most people find it difficult to move and this is even more so for the elderly. If living along, and elderly person would find it difficult to organize how to move to safety due to issues including physical disability. Cognitive dysfunction arising from aging including dementia could result in reduced ability to make decisions which could leave them stranded and unable to make decisions. When living in an assisted living community, this would be easy since the team members would be on hand to help out all the residents to make sure they are safe due to any conditions including severe weather including flooding.
These are just some of the ways in which severe weather conditions such as flooding can affect retirees. Living in an assisted or independent living community is a great way of ensuring that they don’t suffer from any of these problems.
