This post originally appeared on GIC.org.
Together, Vexcel and GIC have fully aligned their strengths to streamline efforts and enhance innovation, while continuing to provide the high-quality aerial imagery and coverage that insurers trust.
Gray Sky Event: Tornadoes in Michigan
The barrage of stormy weather continued to stretch across the U.S. with at least three tornadoes touching down in Michigan Tuesday evening, some being rated at least an EF-2. By Wednesday afternoon, an estimated 27,000 homes and businesses were without power. One tornado touched down in Portage, another in Union City, and in Branch County and Centreville. A third in Berrien and Cass counties. Many homes were destroyed or damaged with the hardest hit area being Portage.
Our Gray Sky team was able to activate safely Wednesday afternoon to begin aerial imagery collection of the impacted area which was available less than 14 hours after wheels down from our aircraft. The high-resolution oblique and ortho imagery shows widespread devastation and the erratic nature of a tornado, where one home could be left standing and the two or three next to it completed destroyed.
The gallery below shows a brief glimpse of damage suffered by this community and what it will take to rebuild homes and restore services to the area. This imagery helps our insurer members proactively reach out to impacted customers to get them on the road to recovery as quickly as possible.
Damage Assessment on Impacted Properties
Members have access to Damage Assessment analytics on impacted homes to get a better idea of the level of destruction and more quickly review and determine the hardest hit areas, whether it’s a home that was completely destroyed or one that sustained minimal damage. Damage Assessment helps jumpstart the restoration and claims process proactively for insurers with their customers with critical details needed before even setting a foot on the ground.
Below is an example of a home damaged by the tornado in Portage, including pre-disaster imagery for comparison. In just seconds, you can quickly see what was lost (an entire garage) and how much of the main home was also destroyed.
Request Access
Please let us know if you need imagery for your response and recovery. You can learn more about how the GIC captures Gray Sky events here. To request access to imagery from the tornadoes that touched down in Michigan, please fill out our contact form below.
Large-format UltraCam cameras & sensors.
vexcel-imaging.com
Aerial surveys by fixed-wing aircraft.
kasurveys.com
Aerial imagery and data for government and business.
vexceldata.com
