Driven by Disaster: PuroClean Goes Where They’re Needed Most

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While some people avoid disasters at all costs, others run toward them. Keegan Trudgen, co-owner of PuroClean of Park Cities/North Dallas, is naturally compelled to help those impacted by property damage disasters.

Whether from fire and smoke damage, water damage, mold, or biohazard issues, Keegan and his crews eagerly travel across the country to help families and businesses seeking property damage restoration services.

“Not Our First Rodeo”

Keegan is proud to own four PuroClean locations in Illinois and one in Wisconsin, along with his newest site, PuroClean of Park Cities/North Dallas. He and his team know that if they genuinely want to help as many people as possible, they need to go where the disasters happen. “Traveling is just part of what we do,” says Keegan, “It’s not our first rodeo.”

When Keegan took ownership of his first PuroClean franchise, he and his team played active roles in national disaster responses throughout the country. When Hurricane Irene devastated the east coast of the United States in late August 2011, his team spent weeks there, helping numerous families rebuild.

These experiences shaped the way Keegan decided he was going to operate his business. National disaster response is one facet of the organization built into our business model.

Teamwork at Home or Away

Board-up services are one of the services we provide.

Despite the desire to help everyone possible, Keegan and his team know they can’t simply go chasing every disaster. Resources are often limited, and local jobs will always take priority.

The decision to send a team to a disaster site is never easy; as they learned from experience, there is a downside to being overzealous. Keegan recounted a time when St. Louis was struck with record-setting flooding. When he and his team traveled to Missouri to help, they discovered that the most impacted areas were cornfields.

The team’s resources, time, and expertise are better suited to helping people’s homes and businesses. There wasn’t much they could do for the crops, so they returned home.

Nationwide Disaster Response

Our certified PuroClean technology assists with emergency restoration.

As hurricane season passed and 2020 matured into 2021, another natural disaster soon followed. In February, two massive polar vortexes ravaged Texas, turning the Lone Star State into a tundra. For weeks, snow and ice buried homes, businesses, and millions of residents lost power. Keegan and his team knew it was an important time for the team to join in the recovery effort.

These vortexes were unlike anything Texas had experienced before. The state is not built for winter storms, and the extent of the damage proved it. In the north, most plumbing is made of sturdy metals, but in Texas, their pipes are made of PVC (Polyvinyl chloride,) a synthetic material that resembles a thick plastic. This is sufficient in the typical subtropical climate, but problems will arise when a winter storm comes through. When the water reaches sub-freezing temperatures inside the PVC pipes, it will expand until the pipes burst. This phenomenon was so widespread that Keegan recalled that it seemed like “every building in Dallas had at least one burst pipe.”

His team spent five weeks helping the people of Texas recover from their unprecedented trauma. During this time, they helped rebuild an office building whose tin roof collapsed under the weight of the ice and snow. When the roof caved in, all the ice melted inside and soaked the interior, causing severe water damage. They spent three weeks on this particular job, but by the time they left, all evidence that there had been any damage was gone entirely.

Lessons Learned 

Witnessing disaster after disaster can be a heavy emotional burden to bear. Seeing families uprooted and livelihoods destroyed can affect even the strongest people. Keegan’s experience has gifted him with a perspective that helps him grow with each challenge because he sees the resiliency of the communities he has visited.

“When we get there, it’s important to remember that [even though] we’re just visiting, these are actual homes [of] real people. They want to tell you their story,” Keegan says with a smile. “They actually want to explain themselves, most of the time. ‘We swear it doesn’t always look like this!’ is something we hear all the time. It’s actually kind of encouraging to see that people can still make lighthearted jokes in their situations.” 

Most people impacted by disasters are experiencing catastrophic events for the first time, and they turn to the team’s experience for a steady hand to guide them.

The most profound lesson that Keegan says he has learned from his experience is to appreciate everything because, ultimately, we are all fragile. This is why he and the whole team at PuroClean do what they do: they are driven by the disaster but compelled by humanity.

For Emergency Property Damage Restoration, Call PuroClean of Park Cities/North Dallas

PuroClean of Park Cities/North Dallas provides state-of-the-art water damage restoration, fire damage restoration service, mold removal, and biohazard cleanup in Irving and Dallas, TX. Our experienced, professional, and compassionate remediation technicians are ready to help mitigate disasters when they strike your property. Visit our website or call us at (214) 446-5458.

Last edited on 13th of June 2023