June 2022
Upcoming Events
Every Saturday morning “Insights into Insurance” radio show KATE 1450AM 8:45am
July 4- Happy 4th of July (Office Closed)
July 15- Acreage Reporting Deadline
July 22 - Emergency Relief Program (ERP) deadline to return completed applications to FSA Office.
August 2-7 – Freeborn County Fair
August 5 -Deadline for CLEAR30 applications for the Conservation Reserve Program.
Sept 6-8 Fall Fire Extinguisher Re-Fill Event
WHEN THUNDER ROARS GO INDOORS
Thunder is the acoustic shock wave resulting from the extreme heat generated by the lightning flash. (A typical lightning flash is about 300 million volts and about 30,000 amps, and can reach temperatures of 54,000 degrees F.) When lightning occurs, it heats the air in a fraction of a second, causing explosive expansion that compresses the air in front of it, forming a shock wave like a sonic boom. Exploding fireworks produce a similar result. Remember that you can count the seconds between the lightning flash and the thunderclap to determine the distance of the storm, since sound travels about one mile for every five seconds. But don’t let this give you a false sense of security. While six miles or more is generally considered “safe,” lightning can travel 10 to 12 miles or more from a thunderstorm, which is often farther than the sound of thunder travels. (Guinness gives the world record to a 477-mile bolt that stretched across Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi on April 29, 2020!) If you can hear thunder, you are close enough to a storm to be in danger of being struck by lightning.
MINNESOTA RANKS AMONG THE WORST FOR HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE
Minnesota has seen its fair share of storms this year, with wind, hail and tornadoes causing damage to property. It is no surprise our offices have been busy processing your clients’ claims. Makes you wonder about the future of homeowners premiums, doesn’t it? A new study from Bankrate.com ranked Minnesota fourth among the worst states for homeowners insurance, based on several factors. The primary factor they consider is insurance premium cost. On average, Minnesotans pay $500 more for a $250,000 homeowners policy with the average price to insure a Minnesota home at $1800. They also considered three other factors; number of permits pulled to build a single residential unit, average percentage of income spent on homeowners insurance and incurred losses by state. Read more about how the states homeowners rates are impacted by the storms by clicking below.
Did YOU know?
WHY DON’T WE SEE LIGHTNING RODS MUCH ANYMORE?
It all started after Ben Franklin’s kite and key experiment led to his invention, hence the name Franklin rods in some parts. The use of lightning rods on homes and buildings was once quite common. But now, not so much, which made us wonder, why? Some of the likely reasons are that the systems are expensive to install, and the risk of fire caused by lightning is less today as more fire-resistant building materials are used. While there is still a risk of fire, the greatest risk for most is damage to electric systems and electronics. Thankfully, insurance coverage is better these days. Lightning rods DO work, but unless you have that house on the hill or are the highest point around, lightning protection systems are generally only found on taller buildings. (The Empire State Building gets struck by lightning an average of 25 times per year!) As kids on the farm, we thought the lightning rods on the barn were cool…not so much for lightning, but the extended range we got with our walkie-talkies when we touched the antenna to the ground cable!)
