Category: News

Forensic Meteorology Expert Fred Campagna to Speak at Loss Executive Association (LEA) 2025 Spring Conference

Panel to Explore Forensic Meteorology at LEA Spring Conference in Newport, RI

Fred Campagna, Director of Forensic Meteorology, will be speaking at the Loss Executive Association (LEA) 2025 Spring Conference, taking place June 4–6 at the Newport Marriott in Newport, Rhode Island. His session, “Forensic Meteorology: Uses and Limitations,” is scheduled for Thursday, June 5.

Fred will join a distinguished panel including John Eggum, Partner at Foran Glennon, and Jeff Morgan, Property/Natural Resources/Construction Claims Manager at Allianz. The session will be moderated by Lee Keokoummane, Large Loss Claims Specialist at AXA XL.

The presentation will provide an in-depth look at the applications and boundaries of forensic meteorology in insurance and legal claims. Attendees will learn about the primary sources of meteorological data, including storm reports, surface-based observations, and radar, and how to interpret that information effectively. The panel will also highlight key limitations of radar data, including estimates of wind speed, hail size, and hail swaths. Real-world case studies will demonstrate how forensic meteorology has been used to strengthen on-site investigations and resolve disputed claims.

For more information about the event, visit the LEA Spring Meeting website.

About Loss Executives Association 2025 Spring Conference

The Loss Executive Association (LEA) Spring Conference is an annual event that brings together leading professionals from across the insurance and legal sectors to discuss complex claims, emerging trends, and industry best practices. Held this year at the Newport Marriott in Newport, RI, the 2025 Spring Conference features expert-led sessions, interactive panels, and networking opportunities designed to foster collaboration and professional development.

About Haag, a Salas O’Brien Company

Haag, a Salas O’Brien Company, offers comprehensive forensic consulting services, including forensic engineering, forensic meteorology, forensic architecture, forensic research & materials testing, building consulting, fire origin and cause investigation, education courses, and data visualization solutions. We specialize in serving the legal and insurance industries. Haag is a trusted leader in analyzing and consulting on complex failures and damage to the built environment.

Brianna Salvitti Selected for the 2025 PICG Claims Academy

Haag is proud to announce that Brianna Salvitti has been selected as a delegate for the 2025 PICG Claims Academy. This prestigious program brings together 27 top professionals for an immersive two-week experience in the London Market, providing hands-on exposure to Lloyd’s, brokers, managing agents, and advanced claims education.

At Haag, we are committed to continuous learning and client-focused expertise, and Brianna’s selection reflects her dedication to upholding these values. Through this opportunity, she will gain invaluable insights, collaborate with industry leaders, and bring back enhanced expertise to better serve our clients.

Haag is also proud to be a sponsor of the 2025 PICG Conference, which will take place in London on May 7th. We look forward to supporting this important industry event and engaging with global claims professionals.

Please join us in congratulating Brianna on this well-earned achievement! We look forward to the knowledge and connections she will bring back from this experience.

Congratulations to Tim Marshall, Inducted into the Storm Chaser Hall of Fame

Tim Marshall Inducted into the National Storm Chaser Hall of Fame

On February 15, 2025, Tim Marshall was honored as one of the inaugural inductees into the National Storm Chaser Hall of Fame, recognizing his lasting contributions to storm chasing and meteorology.

A forensic engineer and meteorologist at Haag since 1983, Tim has made significant advancements in the field of damage assessment. He was a principal developer of the Enhanced Fujita (EF) Scale, which the National Weather Service has used since 2007 to rate tornado severity. Tim remains an active member of the EF Scale committee and continues to advance wind and storm damage assessment through his work on a joint ASCE/SEI/AMS standard for wind speed estimation in tornadoes and severe wind events.

Beyond his technical contributions, Tim is a passionate educator and speaker. Over the past three decades, he has delivered hundreds of lectures on storm damage at meteorological and engineering conferences. His expertise has also been featured on National Geographic, Discovery Channel, NPR, Univision/NBC, CBS, and many other media outlets.

Congratulations to Tim Marshall on this well-deserved recognition!

Congratulations to Haag’s New Vice Presidents and Team Leaders

Congratulations to Haag's new Forensic Consulting VPs and Team Leaders

We are excited to announce the following promotions within Haag:

Jonathan Goode has been promoted to Senior Vice President of Forensic Consulting.
Anthony Bond has been promoted to Associate Vice President of Forensic Consulting.
Kevin Kianka has been promoted to Associate Vice President of Operations.

In addition to these advancements, several engineers and consultants have been elevated to Team Leader roles– Jason Boehm, Rob Danielson, Aaron Duba, Chris Hickman, Ben Irwin, Ronny Lindsay, Alex Sadovskiy, Brandon Alaniz, Jason Plasters and Brian Segedin.

This updated leadership structure underscores our commitment to managing Haag’s dynamic growth and expansion while maintaining our standards for industry-leading expertise and excellence in our service delivery.

Our VPs and Team Leaders are focused on:

Enhancing training, mentorship, and career development
Strengthening client relationships
Delivery industry-leading service

Meet Haag's Forensic Consulting Leaders

Haag Launches New Geoportal Hurricane Reports

Haag Launches New Geoportal Hurricane Reports: Reliable, Court-Defensible Data for Insurance and Legal Professionals

DALLAS, TX — Haag, a Salas O’Brien Company, the United States oldest and most respected forensic consulting firm, renowned for its expertise in forensic meteorology, announced the launch of its new Hurricane Reports, now available via the Haag Geoportal. With this new addition, users gain access to highly accurate and defensible hurricane and tropical storm data, reinforcing Haag’s commitment to providing transparent, trusted, and actionable weather information.

The Haag Geoportal, initially launched in June with Storm Reports offering verified wind, hail, and tornado data for property-related claims, now adds Hurricane Reports as an essential resource for insurance and legal clients. This addition sets a new standard for how weather data is delivered and used in claims investigations, litigation, and decision-making.

What Sets Haag’s Hurricane Reports Apart?

The Haag Geoportal Hurricane Reports leverage data directly from authoritative sources, including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Hurricane Center (NHC), the United States Geological Survey, NCEI Local Climatological Data, and NWS Local Storm Reports via the Iowa Environmental Mesonet (IEM). The Reports cover both the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific basins, providing critical hurricane and tropical storm data such as wind intensity, wind swath, track, and high-water marks. The data is available from the 2017 hurricane season to the present, allowing users to analyze both past storms and ongoing events.

Unlike other reports in the marketplace, Haag’s Hurricane Reports do not rely on proprietary algorithms which are difficult to defend in court. Instead, the Geoportal aggregates and presents raw, verifiable data that is both transparent and reliable, making Haag’s Storm and Hurricane Reports an essential tool for insurance claims adjusters, legal professionals, and those involved in disaster recovery.

Key Features of Haag’s Hurricane Reports:

Active Storm Tracking: During active storms, the Hurricane Reports display dynamic data, including forecast and observed tracks, wind swath, and forecast error cones. This information is updated every 15 minutes as storms progress, ensuring users always have the latest data.
Customizable Mapping Tools: Users can view hurricane and tropical storm data through an easy-to-navigate map interface, with the ability to zoom, select specific data layers, and expand buffer zones to up to 40 miles beyond the area of interest.
Court-Defensible Reports: All data is sourced from trusted agencies like the NHC and USGS, ensuring transparency and reliability without the use of proprietary models.
Historical Data: Users can retrieve reports on storms dating back to 2017, offering valuable historical insight for analysis and legal cases.
Additional Data Layers: Reports include supplementary information such as High Water Marks (HWM), Peak Summaries (PS), Local Climatological Data (LCD), and Preliminary Local Storm Reports (PLSR), providing a comprehensive view of storm impacts.

Value to Insurance and Legal Professionals

Haag’s Hurricane Reports provide an unmatched level of clarity, accuracy, and ease of use. The interactive platform enables users to visualize data in relation to specific locations, zoom in for detailed analysis, and generate PDF reports that are tailored to their needs. This provides professionals with solid evidence for claim investigations, disputes, or litigation.

Get Started Today

The Haag Geoportal Hurricane Reports are now available to all users. Discover how the Haag Geoportal can enhance and expedite your data analysis and reporting process. Visit our website to learn more, create your free account, and request a demo to see the platform in action.

About Haag, a Salas O’Brien Company

Established in 1924, Haag, a Salas O’Brien Company, is proud to celebrate 100 years of forensic innovation and consulting excellence. Haag’s comprehensive services include forensic engineering, forensic meteorology, forensic architecture, construction consulting, fire origin and cause, forensic research and testing, education courses and training, and GIS, BIM, and 3D scanning technology solutions. We specialize in serving the legal, insurance, construction, and manufacturing industries, plus private companies. With a century of expertise, Haag has become the national authority in examining, analyzing, and consulting on complex engineering and technical challenges following failure and damage to the built environment. In June 2024, Haag merged with Salas O’Brien, an employee-owned engineering and technology firm at the forefront of sustainable design. Together, Haag is poised to embrace new challenges, adapt to evolving industries, and provide cutting-edge innovations that will shape the future of forensic engineering and consulting.

About Salas O’Brien

Salas O’Brien is an employee-owned engineering and technical services firm focused on advancing the human experience through the built environment. Our team is engineered for impact™, helping clients achieve critical goals, advancing our team members through growth and opportunity, and operating at the center of important global issues including sustainability and decarbonization. We are a top firm as ranked by Engineering News-Record and Consulting-Specifying Engineer, and we have appeared for over a decade on the Inc. 5000 list of North America’s fastest-growing private companies.

Haag’s Storm Reports: Accurate, Reliable Weather Event Data for Insurance & Legal Professionals

Haag's Storm REPORTS Portal:
Accurate, Reliable Weather Data for Insurance and Legal Professionals

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 2023 produced an unprecedented number of billion-dollar disasters – 28 in total – across the United States. This is the highest number of billion-dollar disasters in the U.S. on record. In the first six months alone, 12 individual billion-dollar weather and climate disasters devastated parts of the nation. These 28 events from 2023 included 17 severe weather/hail events and two tornado outbreaks. According to NOAA’s billion-dollar disaster record dating back to 1980, the U.S. has sustained 376 separate weather and climate disasters exceeding a cumulative cost of $2.660 trillion.

As homes and properties are increasingly affected by severe weather, access to reliable information about these events is critical. NOAA and several other agencies meticulously track these events and have incredible amounts of data available to users. But which sites should you access? How can these events be seen in relation to your property? How do you know which events have impacted a specific location over the years? The Haag Geoportal has the answers to these questions.

The Storm Reports portal on the Haag Geoportal is the ultimate tool for accessing detailed, reliable, and accurate weather reports for wind, hail, and tornado events. It is a powerful mapping application that aggregates data from multiple sources and displays results in an easy-to-understand visual and interactive format. Users search for a location, enter a date range, and select events they are interested in from hail, wind, and tornado options. The Storm Reports portal compiles data from the Storm Prediction Center (SPC; preliminary data that is updated daily) and the Storm Events Database (SED; finalized data available approximately 90 days after an event occurred) and displays relevant events based on the search criteria. Users then have the option to export a PDF report with details about each event including date and time of occurrence, location, magnitude, distance from the location, event narrative, and more. Data is derived from verified national weather sources and is never manipulated, which makes it perfect for insurance professionals, forensic investigators, legal professionals, etc.

Initial location search:

Haag’s Storm Portal reports cover a robust 14-year span (2010 to present day) of weather events and are updated daily, ensuring you have the most accurate and historical data available. These reports are an invaluable tool when trying to assess where events occurred and the magnitude of the events. The data also provides insights into weather patterns – clusters of events show where storms passed through an area and which locations could have been impacted the most severely. When paired with an on-site inspection by a Certified Consulting Meteorologist (CCM), the comprehensive data provided in the reports is invaluable for professionals who need to document and verify weather events. Whether you’re assessing property damage, preparing legal cases, or conducting forensic analysis, the Haag Geoportal provides the accurate and reliable data you need.

As global temperatures rise, the number of severe events will continue to increase. Users of all types need a way to research and understand the impact of weather, especially when it affects their property. The Haag Geoportal allows users to unlock precise weather history and view reliable, verified data to streamline the weather analysis process. Sign up today and experience the difference that weather reporting can make. For more information and to sign up for a free account, visit the Haag Geoportal site today or contact our Geoportal team at geoportal@haagglobal.com.

We’re excited to announce that our Hurricane Report will be available soon for the 2024 hurricane season. This report will feature detailed storm data, Local Storm Reports (LSRs), high water mark data, peak summaries, and more. Stay tuned for this addition to the Haag Geoportal.

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About the Author

Marcie Deffenbaugh, Manager, GIS Services

Marcie Deffenbaugh is the Manager of GIS Services for Haag, a Salas O’Brien Company. Ms. Deffenbaugh oversees initiatives related to GIS planning, system design, and system administration. She also manages a staff of GIS technicians, analysts, cartographers, and project administrative assistants who provide data validation and project management services for oil and gas clients. As the primary liaison between the client management teams and Haag personnel, Ms. Deffenbaugh provides technical consulting services on a regular basis.

Any opinions expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of Haag, a Salas O’Brien Company or subsidiaries.

Justin Kestner presenting at the SCL Conference in Montreal

Justin Kestner and Peter Billis present on lessons from Champlain towers collapse

Principal Forensic Engineer and Senior Managing Partner, Justin Kestner, is presenting with attorney, Peter Billis, on the lessons learned from the Champlain Towers South Collapse. Beyond the engineering and construction lessons there were many unique aspects of ensuing litigation and legislation that could impact the industry for years to come. This presentation provides information about factors that led to the fatal collapse and delves into the ramifications going forward.

Justin Kestner, P.E., MS, MBA, leads the Haag forensic team for Salas O’Brien. In addition to leading Haag, a Salas O’Brien Company, Justin provides forensic engineering consulting and expert witness services in cases involving roof and building envelope performance/damage, bridges, foundation-related issues, building collapses, storm damage, installation issues, alleged product defects, and more. Justin serves as a Senior Managing Principal at Salas O’Brien.

For more information, visit the SCL NA conference registration page.

About SCL

The Society of Construction Law North America (SCL NA) is one of the many international sections of the SCL, founded in 1983 to promote the study and research in the field of construction law. The SCL has over 3,000 members internationally, and in 2017 the final gap in the global SCL network was closed with the founding of the SCL NA Section, which includes the USA and Canada.

About Salas O’Brien

Salas O’Brien is an engineering and technical services firm focused on advancing the human experience through the built environment. Our team is engineered for impact, helping clients achieve critical goals, advancing our team members through growth and opportunity, and operating at the center of important global issues including sustainability and decarbonization. We are a top firm as ranked by Engineering News-Record and Consulting-Specifying Engineer, and we have appeared for the past ten years on the Inc. 5000 list of North America’s fastest-growing private companies.

For more details or to set up an interview, please contact Stacy Lake, Director of Corporate Communications.

Introducing the Haag Geoportal: Comprehensive Weather Event Data for Insurance and Legal Professionals

Introducing the Haag Geoportal:
Comprehensive Weather Event Data for Insurance and Legal Professionals

Dallas, TX – June 25, 2024 – Haag, a Salas O’Brien Company, the United States oldest and most respected forensic consulting firm and leader in forensic meteorology, announced today the launch of its innovative new product, the Haag Geoportal. This interactive web-mapping application is designed to provide insurance and legal professionals with comprehensive, reliable weather event data tailored to specific site locations.

A New Standard in Weather Reporting

The Haag Geoportal delivers precise and detailed weather reports, covering a wide range of storm types, including wind, hail and tornado events. Hurricanes will be added in the fall 2024. By leveraging data sourced from verified national weather authorities such as the NOAA Storm Event Database, NOAA Storm Prediction Center, and the National Weather Service, the Haag Geoportal ensure that users receive trustworthy and defensible information every time.

Why the Haag Geoportal is Different

Unlike other platforms that use proprietary algorithms and offer higher-cost services, the Haag Geoportal provides direct, unmanipulated data from multiple national authorities. This approach not only ensures the data’s accuracy and reliability but also makes it defensible in court, a critical factor for legal and insurance professionals.

Product Features and Benefits

With the Haag Geoportal, users can:

Access Accurate Storm & Hurricane Reports: The platform delivers tailored, site-specific weather data ideal for insurance claims, legal cases, forensic investigations, and detailed weather analysis.
Receive Verified and Reliable Data: Utilizing both preliminary and finalized data from multiple sources, our reports cover a robust 14-year span and are updated daily.
Customized Reports to Fit Specific Needs: Each report includes maps, event types, dates, event magnitudes, and more, providing comprehensive data suited to individual requirements.

Discover how the Haag Geoportal can enhance and expedite your data analysis and reporting process. Visit our website to learn more, create your free account, and request a demo to see the platform in action.

For more information, please contact

Polly Prado, Director of Corporate Communications

214.614.6500 or PPrado@HaagGlobal.com

About Haag, a Salas O’Brien Company

About Salas O’Brien

Haag and Salas O’Brien Announce Partnership

Strength in Unity: Haag & Salas O’Brien Announce Partnership

We are proud to share that Haag has merged with Salas O’Brien, an employee-owned engineering and technology firm at the forefront of sustainable design. We are joining an organization with more than 85 global offices and over 3,550 team members.

We are confident this merger will positively impact all our clients. Our capabilities and portfolio complement Salas O’Brien’s existing work while increasing our combined team’s ability to provide comprehensive, integrated, multi-discipline engineering and consulting services.

Here are some key facts:

The entire Haag leadership group and team are very enthusiastic about this partnership. You will continue to work with the same team of experts and experience the same decision-making, quality of work, and service delivery. As integration occurs, Haag’s service offerings and geographic coverage will expand.
The local Haag leadership team will remain intact with autonomy to best serve our clients.
We share a vision, culture, and leadership style with Salas O’Brien. This was a key factor in our decision to merge with them. We also share a strong portfolio of complementary work.
We can now offer additional in-house expertise and design services like sustainability/green energy, industrial process, pharmaceutical and healthcare, data centers, food and beverage, fire suppression, lighting and acoustic design, but only when it makes sense for you, other team members, and the project.
We will have greater depth of support for many of our internal and overhead operations, thus improving our ability to serve you and your assignments. This merger also broadens our in-house expertise for key services like mechanical, electrical, and structural design.
Haag’s email and website will continue to be maintained and will transition to Salas O’Brien when practical.
Our name is now “Haag, a Salas O’Brien Company.” When Haag leadership believes the transition is complete and when the timing is right, we will adopt the Salas O’Brien name.

We’re very excited about this announcement and look forward to continuing our partnership with you. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out. Learn more.

Enthusiastically,

Justin Kestner, PE, MS, MBA

Sr. Managing Principal

Haag, a Salas O’Brien Company

About Salas O’Brien

About Haag Global, Inc.:

Established in 1924, Haag Global is proud to celebrate 100 years of forensic innovation and consulting excellence. Haag’s comprehensive services include forensic engineering, forensic meteorology, forensic architecture, construction consulting, fire origin and cause, forensic research and testing, education courses and training, and GIS, BIM, and 3D scanning technology solutions. We specialize in serving the legal, insurance, construction, and manufacturing industries, plus private companies. With a century of expertise, Haag has become the national authority in examining, analyzing, and consulting on complex engineering and technical challenges following failure and damage to the built environment. As we move into the next century, Haag is poised to embrace new challenges, adapt to evolving industries, and provide cutting-edge innovations that will shape the future of forensic engineering and consulting.

For more information, please contact:

Polly Prado, Haag Director of Corporate Communications, 214.614.6500

Brandon Alaniz Promoted to Vice President, Leader of Haag’s Construction Consulting Group

Dallas, Texas – June 6, 2024 – Haag Global, Inc., the United States’ oldest and most respected forensic consulting firm, is proud to announce the promotion of Brandon Alaniz to Vice President, where he will lead Haag’s construction consulting group.

“Brandon Alaniz is skilled in project management and experienced in leading teams of experts on large-scale and complex projects,” said Justin Kestner, P.E., CEO of Haag Global. “Over the past seven years at Haag, Brandon has successfully overseen demanding construction consulting projects including major litigation files. He has been trained and mentored by industry veteran and outgoing Construction Consulting leader Larry Dillon to prepare for this leadership role. I am excited to see the imprint Brandon will make on our construction consulting team.”

Brandon has managed or had leading roles in numerous high-profile construction consulting projects, including multiple hurricane and earthquake files in Puerto Rico such as the historic El San Juan hotel. With over 27 years in the construction industry that spans luxury residential to large complex construction projects, he brings a wealth of experience in building construction, repair, and restoration cost assessments for the insurance and legal industries. Brandon is adept at preparing cost estimates and providing litigation support including construction defects and addressing contractor’s standard of care.

As Vice President of Haag Construction Consulting, Brandon will oversee a talented team of consultants, many of whom are likewise very experienced and accomplished. One of Brandon’s priorities will be to expand the division and elevate team members into leadership roles. Brandon was honored with Haag’s Outstanding Leadership and Mentorship Award and Project of the Year awards. Before joining Haag, Brandon worked as a Commercial Project Superintendent for Manhattan Construction Company and held supervisory roles with Braswell Company, Stephenson Consulting, and David Weekley Homes.

Larry Dillon will continue to play a key role in Haag Construction Consulting as Executive Vice President Emeritus/Litigation & Appraisals Lead. Larry will focus on expanding and enhancing litigation and appraisal services and overseeing staff development in those areas.

“Since joining Haag in 2016, Larry significantly enhanced the quality and reputation of Haag Construction Consulting and grew the division into an industry leader,” said CEO Kestner. “He hired and mentored talented staff, took on large projects domestically and internationally, and developed Haag into a go-to firm for building and construction consulting services. Larry has always enjoyed the challenge of litigation and appraisal files, and we are both excited that he will be able to help grow that work at Haag.”

About Haag Global, Inc.:

For more information, please contact:

Polly Prado, Director of Corporate Communications, 214.614.6500

HaagGlobal.com

Category: News

Forensic Meteorology Expert Fred Campagna to Speak at Loss Executive Association (LEA) 2025 Spring Conference

Panel to Explore Forensic Meteorology at LEA Spring Conference in Newport, RI

Brianna Salvitti Selected for the 2025 PICG Claims Academy

Congratulations to Tim Marshall, Inducted into the Storm Chaser Hall of Fame

Tim Marshall Inducted into the National Storm Chaser Hall of Fame

Congratulations to Haag’s New Vice Presidents and Team Leaders