Board up the windows and batten down the hatches — El Nino is on its way to the West Coast. At least that’s what the National Weather Service is calling for.
A local CBS San Francisco Bay Area affiliate, KPIX 5, reported Monday they are placing the chance of seeing the storm this winter at 90%.
This news is far from breaking as it has been a general belief in the meteorology community this summer, but one of the effects it has had is in the roofing industry. The potential rain that could accompany El Nino has caused people to finally get that roof work they’ve been putting off done.
The CBS affiliate also spoke with one long-time roofer, Yale Proctor, from the R.E. Roofing company.
“We’re at three times our typical capacity,” Proctor said. “We’re building a lot of roofs, but there’s not enough workforce to get to all the jobs when the calls come in, it’s such a large amount.”
Homeowners clamoring to get a roof repaired or replaced should make sure the service they hire does quality work. With the high demand of work to do, roofers may try to save time and money by placing a new roof over the one that’s already there. However, re-roofing rather than getting a full tear-off roof can decrease a roof’s life expectancy by 20%.
The lack of rainfall in the West Coast this year has also caused a multitude of problems itself, but as Robert Rector of thePasadena Star-News points out, homeowners should be careful what they wish for.
“Drought-weary residents are so overjoyed at the prospect that they’re dancing on their artificial lawns and toasting each other with shot glasses full of tap water,” Rector commented. “But El Nino is not always a good boy… As we have seen already this year, heavy downpours cause damage and if this is indeed the climatological Big One, as many predict, it could be far worse.”
