John Vanetten

41 | MR. STORMY WEATHER. WHEN THERE'S TROUBLE, HE'S THERE, OFTEN IN STEEL-TOED BOOTS.

It's an occupational hazard. You spend a lot of time watching the Weather Channel.

What do you carry with you?

Everything from ladders to steel-toed boots to parkas, cell phones and laptop computers. It's a mixed bag.

What's your busiest time?

We stay open all year around. I get sent all over the country. We're more likely to have ice events in Buffalo, N.Y., and hurricanes in the coastal South. We're here for flooding in the Midwest, hail in the Great Plains and snow and blizzards in the Northeast.

How do you get ready for a job?

If we know what it might be, like if it's a hurricane or tropical storm, we're able to pre-deploy. We stage where it's going to be close enough to get into the area when it's safe, and to keep our men safe. My job is to get in and work with our agents, our customers and our teams of professional adjusters to assist in getting all of our insureds taken care of as soon as possible.

Not much office time for you?

I sit in an office three days a month. I come from the military [U.S. Army, sergeant first class], so I had a pretty strong background of being out in the field.

How long did you stay for Katrina?

We brought our teams into Mississippi before Katrina, where we felt we'd be as close as possible to respond as quickly as possible. We had 70 adjusters. I was there until Dec. 30, 2005, in a lot of different areas.

How tough was it?

There was limited power and limited infrastructure. At one point, we had to push our cars to get gas. We brought plenty of bottled water to take care of customers.

What was the worst thing you've ever seen?

Other than Katrina, the worst scene for any of our insured is one they're individually involved with, whether it's their roof caving in because of ice, or the floods in Findlay, Ohio. What I really like about my job is we're able to help them when they need it.

What's your favorite kind of weather?

Any day when the sun is shining and the Cubs are winning.

Every Wednesday, the Sun-Times Business Section features a mystery occupation. See if you can guess the job before the end of the interview.

John VanEtten is a field process expert for the national catastrophe team of Encompass Insurance, a subsidiary of Allstate.