 |  |  |
How could we ever forget Hurricane Katrina the horrific 911 calls
for help, or the first hand stories of the people who had been
trapped by rising flood water in the attics of their homes?
While helping out at Ford Park
in Beaumont, Texas which was
the first stop for thousands of
people fleeing the devastation
left by Hurricane Katrina and
watching the news stories,
one picture stuck in my mind. A man with his arm sticking
out the hole in the roof where the whirly bird had been he was
waving for help. The water was up to the eves of the house and
the water was still pouring into the city and he had no where to
go.
It was that day that I started to work on a way out. Through
research I have found that people have been forced into and
have even been dieing in their attics for years. Roof hatches
have been around for over a hundred years;
but not on residences
because of the way they
look, no one wants a big
steel trunk on their roof
or can it even be opened
in a 50 or 100 mph wind?
Security is an issue also.
Is the door locked? Are the boys on the roof again? Over time
they will leak and even be blown off in strong winds. The smoke
detector is one of the best home safety devices to be put in the
home; but once they become annoying most people will disable
them. The cost of some roof hatches could be from $600.00 to
some over $2000.00 plus installing It so I tried to address all of
these concerns in my design, and after many long days I had a
plan and a working model for an attic egress system that was
maintenance free, easy to use, hidden out of site, easy to install,
that will be ready to use even 50 or 60 years from now and is
very low cost.
Most building codes require that the attic floor be decked from
the opening to any mechanical items up there (air handlers, AC
units, heaters, water heaters and the like)
so in most new homes
there is already an area
where a family could gather.
In fact once installed this
unit would give a home a
safe room and a place to
ride out the danger. You
may not have to open the
hatch;but it will give you peace of mind knowing that you are not
trapped.
On Tuesday September 20, 2005 we headed to Houston Texas
to meet with a patent attorney. On Wednesday we had the
paper work done. On Thursday morning Beaumont had a
mandatory evacuation order for Hurricane Rita. It was now
heading straight for us.
The Rita evacuation of the Texas coast was hailed as a great
feat with over 2.7 million people evacuated; but that still meant
that there was over a million people who stayed.
The local, state and federal government will never plan to or is
able to move 100% of the population in such a short time. With in
three days Rita went from heading for south Texas to the Texas
Louisiana border.
Rita slowed down the whole process of getting this device on the
market. It took weeks to get the power back on. We lost
computers in the storm and have been just trying to get all our
lives back together again; even hiring 5 people from New
Orleans who had already lost everything.
for help, or the first hand stories of the people who had been
trapped by rising flood water in the attics of their homes?
While helping out at Ford Park
in Beaumont, Texas which was
the first stop for thousands of
people fleeing the devastation
left by Hurricane Katrina and
watching the news stories,
one picture stuck in my mind. A man with his arm sticking
out the hole in the roof where the whirly bird had been he was
waving for help. The water was up to the eves of the house and
the water was still pouring into the city and he had no where to
go.
It was that day that I started to work on a way out. Through
research I have found that people have been forced into and
have even been dieing in their attics for years. Roof hatches
have been around for over a hundred years;
but not on residences
because of the way they
look, no one wants a big
steel trunk on their roof
or can it even be opened
in a 50 or 100 mph wind?
Security is an issue also.
Is the door locked? Are the boys on the roof again? Over time
they will leak and even be blown off in strong winds. The smoke
detector is one of the best home safety devices to be put in the
home; but once they become annoying most people will disable
them. The cost of some roof hatches could be from $600.00 to
some over $2000.00 plus installing It so I tried to address all of
these concerns in my design, and after many long days I had a
plan and a working model for an attic egress system that was
maintenance free, easy to use, hidden out of site, easy to install,
that will be ready to use even 50 or 60 years from now and is
very low cost.
Most building codes require that the attic floor be decked from
the opening to any mechanical items up there (air handlers, AC
units, heaters, water heaters and the like)
so in most new homes
there is already an area
where a family could gather.
In fact once installed this
unit would give a home a
safe room and a place to
ride out the danger. You
may not have to open the
hatch;but it will give you peace of mind knowing that you are not
trapped.
On Tuesday September 20, 2005 we headed to Houston Texas
to meet with a patent attorney. On Wednesday we had the
paper work done. On Thursday morning Beaumont had a
mandatory evacuation order for Hurricane Rita. It was now
heading straight for us.
The Rita evacuation of the Texas coast was hailed as a great
feat with over 2.7 million people evacuated; but that still meant
that there was over a million people who stayed.
The local, state and federal government will never plan to or is
able to move 100% of the population in such a short time. With in
three days Rita went from heading for south Texas to the Texas
Louisiana border.
Rita slowed down the whole process of getting this device on the
market. It took weeks to get the power back on. We lost
computers in the storm and have been just trying to get all our
lives back together again; even hiring 5 people from New
Orleans who had already lost everything.
The Katrina Hatch is an emergency attic escape hatch. It
allows you to go through the roof to escape from your
attic.
In recent times, people have been put into situations
where they become trapped in their attics either from
trying to escape rising flood waters, a fire or just a ladder
getting knocked over and now your are trapped in a 160
degree attic. You must get out!
I read a story about an elderly lady that was looking in
some boxes in her attic for baby clothes. A very heavy
chest that had been put up there years before over
turned blocking her way out. There are many stories
about people who have rode out high water in there
attics. August of 2005 was not the first and it will not be
the last time that people will be forced into their attics
trying to find higher ground. People rode out Hurricane
Rita in their attics. After much research, I have found that
there is a need for an alternative means of egress from
the confinement of the attic space.
When ever you are told to evacuate you need to do so;
but there is not always such an order. T.S. Allison
dropped over 36 inches of rain on
Houston, TX in a short time.
Tropical Storm Claudette
brought a United States
rainfall record of 43" in
24 hours in and around
Alvin, TX in July 1979.
.
We have had record
rain fall out west and what seems like storm after storm
along the coast.
The Red River and the Mississippi River have flooded
whole cities time and time again.
You don't have to live near
water to become a flood
victim. In fact, everyone lives
in a flood zone. It's just a
matter of how likely it is that
a flood will hit your home
and unfortunately, floods are
the most common natural disaster.
Floods can happen anytime, anywhere. Between 25 and
30 percent of all claims paid by the NFIP are for policies
in low risk areas. Buildings in areas with the greatest risk
of flooding, called Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHAs),
have a 26 percent chance of being flooded during a
30-year mortgage.
Sometimes people put their self at risk and even drown in
their cars while trying to escape the
rising flood waters. Statistics
show that 70% of the people
who die during a flood, do so
trying to escape in their cars.
You just do not hear about this
happening to people in two
story homes because they are
able to go up.
The Katrina Hatch is designed as an emergency egress
system.
It is always ready if you need it and we hope you never
will.
For us along the coast, it's
not always a day at the beach.
allows you to go through the roof to escape from your
attic.
In recent times, people have been put into situations
where they become trapped in their attics either from
trying to escape rising flood waters, a fire or just a ladder
getting knocked over and now your are trapped in a 160
degree attic. You must get out!
I read a story about an elderly lady that was looking in
some boxes in her attic for baby clothes. A very heavy
chest that had been put up there years before over
turned blocking her way out. There are many stories
about people who have rode out high water in there
attics. August of 2005 was not the first and it will not be
the last time that people will be forced into their attics
trying to find higher ground. People rode out Hurricane
Rita in their attics. After much research, I have found that
there is a need for an alternative means of egress from
the confinement of the attic space.
When ever you are told to evacuate you need to do so;
but there is not always such an order. T.S. Allison
dropped over 36 inches of rain on
Houston, TX in a short time.
Tropical Storm Claudette
brought a United States
rainfall record of 43" in
24 hours in and around
Alvin, TX in July 1979.
.
We have had record
rain fall out west and what seems like storm after storm
along the coast.
The Red River and the Mississippi River have flooded
whole cities time and time again.
You don't have to live near
water to become a flood
victim. In fact, everyone lives
in a flood zone. It's just a
matter of how likely it is that
a flood will hit your home
and unfortunately, floods are
the most common natural disaster.
Floods can happen anytime, anywhere. Between 25 and
30 percent of all claims paid by the NFIP are for policies
in low risk areas. Buildings in areas with the greatest risk
of flooding, called Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHAs),
have a 26 percent chance of being flooded during a
30-year mortgage.
Sometimes people put their self at risk and even drown in
their cars while trying to escape the
rising flood waters. Statistics
show that 70% of the people
who die during a flood, do so
trying to escape in their cars.
You just do not hear about this
happening to people in two
story homes because they are
able to go up.
The Katrina Hatch is designed as an emergency egress
system.
It is always ready if you need it and we hope you never
will.
For us along the coast, it's
not always a day at the beach.
The Katrina hatch
When You Can't Go Out You Must Go Up!
Existing style
Click on Picture to
see more of
The Katrina Hatch
see more of
The Katrina Hatch