Rabbi Braun Issues Sukkah Guidance Ahead of Nor’easter Storm

Crown Heights Beis Din Rov Rabbi Yosef Braun shares important halachic guidance on securing schach and what to do if a sukkah is damaged during the impending nor’easter.

Crown Heights Beis Din Rov Rabbi Yosef Braun has issued Halachic guidance regarding the sukkah with the nor’easter expected this weekend.

The following is transcribed from his audio message:

Ideally, when Yom Tov comes in, the sukkah should already be completely kosher with the schach uncovered, but that is not a necessity.

One important point, the schach has to be able to withstand an ordinary wind during sukkos. If it cannot withstand a normal wind, then the sukkah is not kosher, even if that wind never actually comes.

So if your schach would not hold up to a normal wind, it should be secured. The best way is to put wood beams or additional green schach on top of it. You can also tie it down with an unprocessed material, raffia is preferable, but unprocessed string such as jute is also fine.

If you don’t have any of those, the only thing you have is zip ties, use zip ties. Schach secured with zip ties is kosher, and that’s certainly better after the fact, and that’s certainly better than having a sukkah that isn’t kosher.

On the other hand, if your schach could handle a normal wind, but you’re concerned about a storm like this one, the sukkah remains kosher as it is. Nevertheless, it’s a good idea to secure it anyhow, so that hopefully you’ll still have a sukkah after the storm. Again, preferably with wood or raffia, or jute, and if the only thing you have is zip ties, use zip ties.

If unfortunately the schach does blow off to the point that the sukkah is no longer kosher, it has to be fixed before using the sukkah again. On Chol HaMoed, you can simply fix it. On Shabbos and Yom Tov, you cannot fix it yourself. If you have nowhere else to eat, you may have a non-Jew fix it.

If the schach just shifts a little bit, but the sukkah is still kosher, you can put the schach back into place. On Shabbos and Yom Tov, schach is muktzah, so don’t move it with your hands, you can move it with your feet or with your elbows.

Also, after the storm, check whether the schach shifted and created larger open areas, whether along the walls or in the middle of the sukkah. Depending on the size and location of those gaps and openings, it could affect the kashrus of the sukkah.

If a wall of the sukkah blows down, it usually does not make the sukkah posul, as long as you still have three proper kosher walls.

One last point. On Shabbos and Yom Tov, structural repairs to the wall, like driving in a nail, screwing in a bracket, hammering wood, cutting or sewing something to size or tying a permanent knot, may not be done, even by a non-Jew, because these are malachos D’oraiysa.

The practical message is, take a few minutes before Yom Tov to check your sukkah, especially make sure your schach is secure. Hopefully you won’t have any problems, but it’s much better to take care of it now than to discover, after the storm, that you no longer have a kosher sukkah.

Gut Yom Tov, a freilich Yom Tov, a safe and peaceful Yom Tov to everyone Moshiach now.

AUDIO

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