In an article from culturemap.com written by Tyler Rudick, a convenience store in a gas station in Sugar Land, which is around 30 minutes from Houston, collapsed due to severe weather conditions. A storm has downed power lines and flooded city streets across the region. However, hailstones that were around an inch in diameter rained down from the sky, adding to the troubles of the residents.
According to the gas station owner, Shams Harirani, heavy balls of hail were forcing the roof down, and while he was talking to 911, everything fell down. Fortunately, customers and staff were able to evacuate the building even before the roof fell, thus, no injuries were reported. The storm has also caused a lightning-sparked blaze at a Cypress oil storage facility.
It was believed that the weight of the ice and rain triggered the collapse of the store. Hailstorms result to critical damages on commercial roofing in Houston and could add up to thousands worth of repair bills. It’s a good thing that established companies like Live Oak Construction, offer affordable roof inspection and roof repair services for hail damages on residential and commercial roofing systems.
From the ground, hail damage is not too noticeable and may only be felt once leaks and cracks become major issues. Such roofing problems take a while to make their presence known, and may not even be apparent as soon as the storm is over.
When an expert on commercial roofing in Houston inspects your roof, he will identify the damages caused by hail and those that were caused by natural weathering. For instance, there are two types of damages on asphalt shingles, deterioration of the reinforcing mat and loss of granules. When a reinforcing mat ruptures, the ability of shingles to adequately shed water will be greatly reduced, and the loss of granules shortens the life of the shingles.
After a hailstorm has passed, inspect the area around your establishment, if you see a couple of shingles or bits of roofing components lying on the ground, then there is a chance that your building has roof damage. Hire a professional roofer right away to ensure that damages are repaired to prevent further losses to your business.
