With hurricanes projected to become more intense in coming years, local business and homeowners are discussing ways to better prepare for the next big storm.
The Travelers Institute held its eighth annual "Kicking Off Hurricane Preparedness Season" symposium in Houston Tuesday, an interactive look at the cost of Harvey.
“We looked at places where higher standards and better construction methods made a difference and try to prepare people for what's to come,” says Roy Wright, president and CEO of the Insurance Institute for Building and Home Safety.
“Twenty-five million Americans were impacted by natural disasters last year, that's eight percent of the nation's population.”
One thing homeowners can do is secure their roofs.
“As people upgrade or have to replace their roof, they can rebuild that to a fortified 'bronze status' so they can withstand the winds that come,” says Wright, who also served as executive director of the National Flood Insurance Program.
Wright says Houston leads the nation in flood insurance plans, but many were still without it during Harvey. However, he says the agency saw applications spike in the weeks and months after Harvey.