Safeway Homes to Provide Disaster-Resistant Houses
Safeway Homes announced today it will build homes to the Fortified…for safer living® standard. The “Fortified” designation is granted by the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS), a nonprofit organization supported by the insurance industry.
The “Fortified” program specifies construction and design guidelines to increase a new home’s resistance to natural disasters. The program pays special attention to the most vulnerable areas: openings such as doors and windows, connections from the foundation up, roof construction and building elevation. The program also requires a series of third-party inspections. In Mississippi, “Fortified” homes:
• Are designed to withstand wind speeds 20 MPH above those set by the American Society of Civil Engineers;
• Have higher design pressure rated windows and doors, and in the southern portion of the state require impact-resistant opening protection;
• Have roofing materials that provide resistance to water penetration, high winds and hail; and
• Provisions that take flood and wildfire into consideration.
“We are pleased to be working with IBHS to provide strong, affordable homes throughout Mississippi,” said Buddy Jenkins, President of Safeway. “From the beginning, our homes have been built to meet severe wind requirements, and we are pleased to be the first manufacturer in Mississippi to provide system-built homes meeting the Fortified…for safer living® criteria.”
For system built homes like those offered by Safeway, the “Fortified” designation is granted once the home is permanently sited and an inspection shows elevation and connection details meet IBHS requirements.
Homes designated by IBHS as Fortified…for safer living® can qualify for insurance rate reductions when insuring through the Mississippi Windstorm Underwriting Association, better known as the Wind Pool. In the counties along the Gulf Coast, this will reduce Wind Pool insurance premiums by twenty five percent in the first year of coverage.
For information on the Fortified…for safer living® program visit the IBHS Web site www.DisasterSafety.org or call toll free 1 (866) 657-4247.
Safeway Homes, www.SafewayHomes.com, manufactures highly wind resistant homes in its Lexington, Mississippi plant. Since its inception in 2004, Safeway Homes has produced over five hundred safe, energy-efficient homes for the people of Mississippi. Safeway Homes is the primary provider of system-built homes in the coastal area. To contact Safeway Homes, call Dan Hobbs at (601) 936-9465.