Last Thursday, he spent six hours walking through ankle-deep water and mud in one building, surrounded by the stench of dead fish decomposing on a parking garage floor and the loud noise of cleaning equipment. His workday lasted about 17 hours.
"It's tiring beyond belief," Sherin said, "but there's a lot of purpose in what we do."
Long Process
For property owners, an inspection is often the first step in a longer, paperwork-heavy process.
Few adjusters can immediately authorize payments, especially if policyholders are insured though state agencies or the National Flood Insurance Program.
Richard Campell, whose Houston home was flooded, said his inspector was armed with an iPad and estimating software. The adjuster measured rooms, asked about water levels and photographed mounds of ruined belongings in the yard, he said.
Campell, 67, must now submit an inventory with price replacement costs, including details like his refrigerator's model and serial number. Still, he is grateful that the inspector reached his home in only five days.
"It was the luck of the draw," he said.
Sean Maxwell, 27, also of Houston, had to leave her mother's flooded home in a boat. An adjuster visited last week, and the family is now waiting for documents explaining the payout.
"The funny thing is, when it comes in the mail, I don't know how we're going to get it because we don't live there," Maxwell said.