Chicago, we have a problem!

So last night, I was awakened at 1:30am by the annoying wind chime and tarp that is over one of our skylights, being blown by the wind. (Yes, we have a case of the shoemakers children needing shoes here!) It sounded like it was going to take the entire roof off the house. This went on ALL night! It sounded so bad, I kept wondering about the debris that I was going to wake up and find strewn about the neighborhood. Surprisingly, the aftermath in our neighborhood was not as bad as it sounded. (The picture to the left was taken in April 2008 after a wind storm in our neighborhood downed many Bradford Pear trees.)

When I was taking the Haag Engineering Residential Roof Inspector Course, we learned some interesting things about butt rott, the ever-fabulous ice ball launcher and the instructor pointed out that Chicago wasn't actually the windiest city*. Gasp, I know! Did you know that Dallas, TX ranks as #5 in the windiest cities in the U.S. and Chicago doesn't even make the top 10? Even more gasp, I know! Since I have lived most of my life in Dallas, I never really thought it to be "out of the ordinary" windy, but ever since the instructor pointed it out, I have been more aware and have noticed how windy Dallas actually is!

I googled the top windiest cities in the U.S. and found the following chart at CurrentResults.com with information tabulated from NOAA National Climatic Data Center, regarding the average annual wind speed of the windiest US cities (in miles per hour and kilometres per hour):

City	MPH	KPH
Boston, Massachusetts	12.3	19.8
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma	12.2	19.6
Buffalo, New York	11.8	19.0
Milwaukee, Wisconsin	11.5	18.5
Dallas, Texas	10.7	17.2
Kansas City, Missouri	10.6	17.1
San Francisco, California	10.6	17.1
Cleveland, Ohio	10.5	16.9
Minneapolis, Minnesota	10.5	16.9
Virginia Beach, Virginia	10.5	16.9
Providence, Rhode Island	10.4	16.7
Chicago, Illinois	10.3	16.6
Detroit, Michigan	10.2	16.4

If you live in a windy city, here are some things you can do to keep your roof and property safe:

1. Annually inspect your roof - make sure all flashings, chimney covers, vents, siding, etc are secure and reseal all penetrations and any lifted shingles. (Or, better yet, have Outback perform a Roof Tuneup!)
2. Keep trees trimmed and clear of any dead or large limbs that protrude over the roof.
3. Secure any objects that maybe become flying debris, such as patio furniture and umbrellas.

Most insurance policies do not have a provision to cover wind damage, leaving homeowners to make what can sometimes add up to very costly repairs, depending on the extent of the damage. At Outback, we install Atlas Signature Select roofing systems, that come with a built-in wind policy of up to 130 mph wind. We also offer Roof Tuneup maintenance plans to help keep your roof in tip-top shape, come rain, wind or shine! For more information on our roofing systems that keep you covered, please contact your Dallas roofing company, Outback.

(*Legend has it that Chicago is called the Windy City because of the hot air bellowing from the local politicians!)

- Jennifer Crutcher 

Jennifer is a licensed insurance adjuster in the state of Texas, a Haag Engineering Certified Residential Roof Inspector and is passionate about consumer protection and education. She works at Outback Roofing, a family owned and locally operated company, where she is responsible for daily office operations. Jennifer resides with her family and two German shepherds in the Dallas area. A little known fact is that she secretly aspires to be an ice dancer!