At IBHS, we research the impact of severe weather on homes and businesses to find actionable solutions. #disasterprep
Joined April 2009
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Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety retweeted
Ground is officially broken at Heartwood Village ❤️🏡
In Black Mountain, North Carolina, FLASH joined ROOTS Community Land Trust, Fuller Center Disaster ReBuilders, community leaders, partners, sponsors, and builders to mark an important step forward in #HurricaneHelene recovery.
Over the next two years, Heartwood Village will bring 50 permanently affordable homes to families displaced by the storm, with homes designed to achieve the IBHS FORTIFIED™ Gold standard.
Through the FLASH #StrongHomesInitiative, we’re proud to support this effort with technical expertise and resilient construction guidance alongside partners including @gafroofing, @MDS_Respond @strongtie @HomeDepotFound @IBHS_org
For these families, recovery means safer, stronger homes and greater resilience for the future.
@DavidWVenables
#HeartwoodVillage #DisasterRecovery #ResilientCommunities #BlackMountainNC
Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety retweeted
Resilience is a team effort. 🏡
Today, partners broke ground on Heartwood Village in Black Mountain, NC, where 50 permanently affordable homes will be built to the @ibhs_org FORTIFIED Gold Standard.
Led by the Fuller Center Disaster ReBuilders, with support from @FederalAlliance Strong Homes Initiative and Roots Community Land Trust, this project is bringing resilience to communities recovering from Hurricane Helene, reminding us that severe weather impacts are not limited to the coast.
The science behind IBHS starts with our team. 🥼
Scientists, engineers, technicians and communicators bring their expertise, curiosity and a shared purpose to help reduce severe weather damage to homes, businesses and communities.
🎥 Hear from Team IBHS on what drives their work each day: youtu.be/1EKswy0Vup4?si=_8m2…
Wildfire Prepared Home launched in California in 2022. Today, the IBHS team is back in the state showing what science-backed wildfire mitigation looks like in action. 🔥
Alongside @CalChiefs_CFCA, IBHS hosted a side-by-side wildfire demonstration, featuring two structures facing the same simulated wildfire conditions. One incorporated all elements of the Wildfire Prepared Home Enhanced standard, while the other had common features that can create pathways for a home to ignite.
The demonstration showed why wildfire mitigation requires a layered approach, with measures working together to interrupt multiple pathways to ignition and reduce wildfire risk.
Learn more about the science behind Wildfire Prepared Home at wildfireprepared.org/.
#BehindTheScenes at the IBHS Research Center 🌧️ The deluge system in our main test chamber is a safety precaution for fire protection.
Take a look at our latest test of this system as we prepare for upcoming experiments.
How wildfire moves through a community can come down to the vulnerabilities on and around each home. 🔥
During IBHS’ investigation of the Old Trails Fire in Spokane, Washington, IBHS researchers observed how mulch within the first five feet of houses led to flames reaching and igniting even noncombustible walls. Combustible fences and decks also created pathways for fire to spread between properties, while features like window wells presented additional opportunities for ignition.
These findings highlight how addressing vulnerabilities around individual homes can help communities interrupt the pathways that allow wildfire to spread and reduce future losses.
Read our Early Insights Report at ibhs.org/wildfire/old-trails….
When your roof cover comes off during high wind, what's underneath could determine how much water enters your home.💧
Severe thunderstorms, hurricanes and tornadoes can damage roof coverings, creating a path for wind-driven rain. Sealing your roof deck can reduce water entry by up to 95%, but not every roofer includes this critical step. 🌧️
Learn why this added layer can make a major difference - and find more ways to prepare your home for severe weather at ibhs.org/hurricaneready.
How much more does it cost to build a wildfire-resistant home in Colorado? 🔥
The latest research from @cuboulder’s @earthlabcu found that incorporating key wildfire-resilient construction measures into new Colorado homes adds just 1% to modeled direct construction costs.
These insights will help pave the way for future wildfire-resilient construction.
Explore the full study at doi.org/10.25810/9vsh-pb94.
ALT The image is an informational graphic about wildfire-resilient construction costs. It says, "New Colorado Cost Study: Wildfire-Resilient Construction Costs Less Than You Think." It highlights that building a stronger, more resilient home costs about 1% more. Logos of "Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety," "University of Colorado Boulder," and "Earth Lab" are at the bottom. The background features a modern house with surrounding trees.
Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety retweeted
Free webinar Oct 22, 8:30-9:30 AM Pacific, from Earth Advantage: Wildfire Prepared Home, Applied Mitigation for the Built Environment. It covers how embers, radiant heat and flame contact find the weak points in roofs, vents, walls, decks and fences. earthadvantage.org/workforce…
How does vegetation around a home affect its wildfire risk? 🔥 This year, IBHS is expanding its research to find out.
In 2025, IBHS tested hedges under more intense heat exposure to better understand how vegetation within 0-5 ft of a home may behave during a wildfire. This year, researchers are expanding the work to test a wider range of plants within 5-30 ft of a structure.
Each test helps provide critical data that can inform practical mitigation steps homeowners can take to help reduce their home’s ignition risk.
Learn more about IBHS’ research at ibhs.org/wildfire/vegetation….
Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety retweeted
What difference can five feet make during a wildfire? A pretty big one.
We saw it firsthand during our live-fire demonstration with the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS).
Two buildings. Same fire. One burned. The other didn't.
The difference? Science-based wildfire mitigation, including nothing combustible within the first five feet.
Take a look around your home. Mulch, plants, firewood, a wood fence, and other things that burn can give fire a path right to your house.
Five feet. Start there.
For more information on home wildfire mitigation:
bit.ly/westmetroreadysetgo
Wildfire mitigation works best when vulnerabilities are addressed together. 🔥
Last month, IBHS joined @WestMetroFire and @RMIIA for a live-fire demonstration showing how homes with comprehensive mitigation perform compared with those with vulnerabilities left unaddressed, such as unprotected vents.
Now, leaders across Colorado are putting that science into action through Wildfire Prepared Home, a clear, science-based pathway to reduce a home’s ignition risk.
🎥 See how communities across Colorado are leveraging the program: youtu.be/5KndCbBkvLs
Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety retweeted
More than 100,000 families have chosen FORTIFIED for stronger storm protection - and they're finding the benefits extend beyond the last storm.
🏠 From greater confidence in their homes to reduced damage and greater financial security, hear from homeowners and professionals about the difference FORTIFIED can make: youtu.be/d4cEhq6m0X4
Could a 3D-printed home stand up to severe weather? 🌪️
On this month’s Disaster Discussions Podcast, host Rachael Gauthier sits down with an engineer from @icon3dtech to explore the technology behind large-scale 3D-printed construction. Hear how ICON builds these homes and how they’re tested against wind, wind-driven rain and wildfire.
🎧 Listen wherever you get your podcasts or ibhs.org/disaster-discussion….
🏠 Confidence in your roof starts with research. The IBHS Hail Impact-Resistant (IR) Shingle Ratings provide research-backed performance results to help homeowners make more informed roofing decisions. The updated ratings feature numeric scoring and include about 95% of the IR shingle market.
Explore the full scorecard at ibhs.org/ImpactRatings.
ALT Promotional poster for updated hail impact-resistant shingle ratings featuring a scale from poor to excellent with numeric scores and descriptions. Includes logos for DP-Test Labs and St. Cloud Inc.
Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety retweeted
While a FORTIFIED Roof is designed and proven to withstand high wind events, it's not “stormproof.” It can't prevent unpredictable damage, such as a fallen tree, which may require repairs. What matters next is ensuring those repairs are completed and documented to continue meeting FORTIFIED's science-backed standard.
If your FORTIFIED Roof is damaged, connect with your roofer and FORTIFIED Evaluator before repairs begin. Your evaluator can help document the work needed to maintain your FORTIFIED designation.
Learn more at fortifiedhome.org.
Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety retweeted
Heading outside after #Isaias?
⚠️ Avoid downed power lines.
🚗 Never drive through floodwater.
🏠 Wait for official clearance before returning to evacuated areas.
🔌 Keep generators outdoors.
Stay alert and follow local officials' guidance.
#QuickTip to better protect your roof before #Isaias arrives: close your interior doors.
Shutting your doors can reduce pressure on your roof by up to 30% giving it a better chance of staying intact during high winds.
Find more ways to prepare your home at ibhs.org/hurricanereadyhomeb….
How many ways do you have setup to receive severe weather alerts? Be sure to have at least 3! Make sure you have options that do not require electricity or Internet.
✔️Weather Radio
✔️ Phone Alerts
✔️ Local TV
✔️Social Media
✔️Weather Apps
Learn more ways to prep your home ahead of an evacuation order at ibhs.org/hurricanereadyhomeb…
Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety retweeted
#Isaias has strengthened into a major Category 3 hurricane. Infrared imagery from @NOAA’s #GOESEast (#GOES19) 🛰️ is tracking Isaias as it approaches the northern Gulf Coast, where dangerous conditions are expected—including hurricane-force winds, life-threatening storm surge, flash flooding and possible tornadoes.
Latest updates on #HurricaneIsaias:
noaa.gov/isaias