Preparing Teams for Major Winter Storm Events: Key Lessons for CAT Response Readiness
Major winter storms create a perfect storm of challenges for restoration contractors: frozen pipes, widespread power outages, inaccessible sites, labor shortages, and heightened health and safety risks. Experience from recent catastrophic winter events shows that success in these conditions depends less on speed and more on preparation, prioritization, and discipline.
Below are the key principles restorers should understand and implement before the next major winter storm hits, based on industry guidance developed specifically for winter storm CAT response.
1. CAT Response Is a Resource Management Problem First
Winter storm losses often stretch across entire regions, not isolated neighborhoods. That means:
- Equipment, fuel, power, housing, and labor may all be limited
- Employees may also be personally impacted by the disaster
- Transportation, communications, and utilities may be unreliable for days or weeks
Before committing to work, contractors should compare available resources vs. expected demand. Overcommitting during a CAT event is one of the most common causes of financial and operational failure.
Key takeaway: Not every job can (or should) receive full restoration services immediately.
2. Hazard Assessments Are Non-Negotiable
Every winter storm loss must begin with a site-specific hazard assessment. Frozen pipe losses frequently involve materials and conditions that introduce serious health risks, including:
- Suspected asbestos-containing materials
- Lead-based paint in older structures
- Silica dust from drywall removal
- Mold growth from delayed drying
When testing resources are unavailable, suspect materials must be treated as hazardous by default, and work scopes may need to be limited to avoid regulatory violations.
Key takeaway: CAT conditions do not suspend safety laws or environmental regulations.
3. Stabilization Is Often the Smartest Service
When drying equipment, power, testing services, or qualified labor are unavailable, stabilization as a service allows contractors to help more people while reducing risk.
Stabilization focuses on:
- Stopping the source of water (shutting off ruptured supply lines)
- Removing bulk water
- Removing select saturated materials
- Reducing humidity where possible (even via ventilation)
This approach minimizes further damage while buying time for full restoration later.
Key takeaway: Doing less work correctly is better than doing too much work unsafely.
4. Winter Storm Losses Create Unique Safety Risks
Cold-weather CAT work introduces hazards beyond typical water losses, including:
- Carbon monoxide risks from generators and fuel-powered equipment
- Limited medical services and emergency response
- Worker fatigue from extended deployments
- Increased exposure risks due to damaged building systems
Contractors must continuously reassess site conditions as utilities, weather, and building stability change.
Key takeaway: Safety planning must be ongoing — not a one-time checklist.
5. Project Prioritization Is Essential
Demand during winter storm CAT events will almost always exceed capacity. Contractors should prioritize projects based on:
- Life safety and habitability
- Availability of power and utilities
- Presence of vulnerable occupants
- Ability to legally and safely perform the work
In many cases, this means choosing stabilization over full drying or delaying work until conditions improve.
Key takeaway: Strategic triage protects both your clients and your business.
6. Documentation Protects Everyone
Detailed documentation is critical during CAT response, especially when work scopes are limited. Records should clearly capture:
- Initial building conditions
- Moisture levels and environmental conditions
- Hazard assessments and assumptions
- Services performed — and services intentionally not performed
Clear documentation helps manage expectations, supports billing, and reduces liability.
Key takeaway: If it isn’t documented, it didn’t happen.
7. Contracts Must Match Reality
CAT response contracts should clearly define:
- The exact scope of services being provided
- Known limitations due to resources or conditions
- Assumptions about hazards and testing availability
Poorly written or generic contracts are one of the fastest ways to lose money — or invite legal trouble — during a catastrophe.
Key takeaway: CAT work demands CAT-specific contracts.
Winter storm CAT events are not just “bigger water losses.” They are complex, high-risk operations that require clear thinking, disciplined planning, and a willingness to say no when conditions demand it.
Restorers who prepare in advance — by understanding stabilization strategies, regulatory realities, and resource constraints — are far more likely to protect their teams, serve their communities, and emerge from CAT response stronger rather than overextended.