Restaurant owner makes ingenious move to protect business after nearly losing everything: 'Don't wait ... get ready for it'

After losing everything in his Naples, Florida, restaurant to flooding from Hurricane Ian in 2022, one business owner decided to invest in the proper precautions to keep his newly rebuilt establishment safe.

Alberto Varetto, who owns Alberto's on Fifth, has enlisted the help of Xero Technologies for flood-protective precautions, according to WFTX. Xero Flood, its custom-fit, inflatable device that barricades doors and prevents floodwater from entering the structure, could save the restaurant from a catastrophic flood.

The device works by building pressure as the device inflates and expands to fit the width of an opening, such as a door or a window. The device will counteract the force of external water pushing against the door, preventing the barricade structure from caving in.

According to the company's website, this device can be installed without additional fixed-point hardware, making it easy to install and remove as necessary.

"It doesn't matter how big the opening is, how small the opening is — we build it to size," said Mark Crabtree, CEO of Xero Technologies, per Fox 4 News.

Extreme weather events such as Hurricane Ian are becoming more common and more severe, brought on by rising global temperatures.

The community must work together to protect the town and prepare against unpredictable extreme weather events, because if all but one business survives flooding, then the town may as well be in ruins. That's not good for business for anyone.

Crabtree recommends that more business owners be proactive and invest in flood-prevention technology such as Xero Flood to avoid a repeat of Hurricane Ian in 2022.

"Don't wait until the hurricane will come, but start to work and get ready for it," said Varetto, per Fox 4 News.

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