The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, in cooperation with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the state of Louisiana, recently launched a pilot program to explore temporary roofing options for homes that may otherwise have been disqualified from the USACE Operation Blue Roof program.
Under the current program, many homes that may need assistance are ineligible for a temporary roof. USACE does not install temporary roofs on some types of metal roofs, flat surfaces, tile or slate roofs and if there is more than 50 percent structural damage to the roof. Josh Marx, USACE temporary roofing program manager, said the reason that these types of roofs are currently ineligible is that the traditional blue roof installations require fastening nails through furring strips directly into the roof. He said nailing the traditional blue roof on these ineligible surfaces could ultimately cause more harm to the roof. Marx said the new pilot program explores the use of shrink wrap material that minimizes or completely removes the need for nails into the roof.
Marx added that the pilot program has been on the temporary roofing program’s radar for several years but said the timing never really worked out in any of the previous temporary roofing missions. He said the difference maker this year was the sheer speed of the Hurricane Ida blue roof mission. He said…
