It’s been nearly three weeks since Hurricane Harvey made landfall, and many homes still have boarded up windows.
KRIS 6 News asked: How long can you keep your windows boarded up after a hurricane?
Technically, the boards can stay up through the end of hurricane season – Nov. 30th, but the boards could pose a danger.
“The things that keep people out, also keep people in,” said Capt. James Brown, Corpus Christi Fire Department.
When it comes to fire safety – those boards could block a safe way out of a home.
“Have some plan in place so that, you know, in case something happens and ‘I can’t get out this way – this is what I can do.’” Brown said.
Fire safety should be at the top of mind if a homeowner decides to keep the boards in place. Keep in mind that boarded up windows also might give people the wrong impression. Some might think the house is vacant or abandoned, and that’s where code enforcement could get involved.
“If they do get a complaint – they’ll look into it, but in reality it’s all about common sense,” said Lt. John Hooper, a spokesman for Corpus Christi Police Department. “Really- it’s more of a safety issue than anything else.”
For some people, it took a lot of effort to put up those heavy boards, Hooper said, so it’s reasonable and within city code to keep them in place during hurricane season.
