Floods

FEMA Updated: Sep 1st 2005

What Is A Flood?

Floods are the most common and widespread of all natural disasters--except fire. Most
communities in the United States have experienced some kind of flooding, after spring rains,
heavy thunderstorms, or winter snow thaws.

A flood, as defined by the National Flood Insurance Program is:

"A general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of two or more acres of
normally dry land area or of two or more properties (at least one of which is your property) from:

• Overflow of inland or tidal waters,

• Unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any
source, or
• A mudflow.

[The] collapse or subsidence of land along the shore of a lake or similar body of water as a result
of erosion or undermining caused by waves or currents of water exceeding anticipated cyclical
levels that result in a flood."

Floods can be slow, or fast rising but generally develop over a period of days. Mitigation
includes any activities that prevent an emergency, reduce the chance of an emergency happening,
or lessen the damaging effects of unavoidable emergencies. Investing in mitigation steps now,
such as, engaging in floodplain management activities, constructing barriers, such as levees, and
purchasing flood insurance will help reduce the amount of structural damage to your home and
financial loss from building and crop damage should a flood or flash flood occur.

What Should I Do Before A Flood?

Purchase Flood insurance. The FloodSmart.Gov website has information on how you can secure
a flood policy. The law can require it. But the laws of nature demand it. Flooding can happen
anytime, anywhere. There are many different flood zones throughout the United States with
different levels of risk. Everyone lives in a flood zone!

Knowing and understanding your flood zone helps you understand your risk of financial loss. It's
also important information to consider when purchasing flood insurance. View the level of flood
risk to your property and community at the FEMA Map Store where viewing flood risk
identification maps is free (Note: Use Internet Explorer Only!).

Besides insuring your property, there are other things you can do before a flood to minimize
potential loss to your home and ensure your family's safety.
• Have disaster supplies on hand:
o Flashlights and extra batteries
o Portable, battery-operated radio and extra batteries tuned to a local station, and
follow emergency instructions.
o First aid kit and manual
o Emergency food and bottled water
o Non-electric can opener
o Essential medicines
o Cash and credit cards
o Sturdy shoes
• If you live in a frequently flooded area, take preventative measures and stockpile
emergency building materials:
o Plywood, plastic sheeting, lumber, nails, hammer and saw, pry bar, shovels, and
sandbags.
o Have check valves installed in building sewer traps to prevent flood waters from
backing up in sewer drains.
o As a last resort, use large corks or stoppers to plug showers, tubs, or basins.
• Take photos or videos of all of your important possessions. If your home is damaged in a
flood, these documents will help you file a full flood insurance claim.
• Store important documents and irreplaceable personal objects (such as photographs)
where they won't get damaged. If major flooding is expected, consider putting them in a
storage facility.
• Post emergency telephone numbers by the phone. Teach children to dial 911.
• Plan and practice a flood evacuation route with your family.
o Learn flood-warning signs and your community's alert signals
o Contact your local emergency management office or local American Red Cross
chapter for a copy of the community flood evacuation plan.
o This plan should include information on the safest routes to shelters. Individuals
living in flash flood areas should have several alternative routes. Request
information on preparing for floods and flash floods.
o Develop an emergency communication plan.
o In case family members are separated from one another during floods or
flashfloods (a real possibility during the day when adults are at work and children
are at school), have a plan for getting back together.
o Ask an out-of-state relative or friend to serve as the "family contact." After a
disaster, it's often easier to call long distance. Make sure everyone in the family
knows the name, address, and phone number of the contact person.
o Make sure that all family members know how to respond after a flood or flash
flood. Teach all family members how and when to turn off gas, electricity, and
water.
o Teach children how and when to call 9-1-1, police, fire department, and which
radio station to tune to for emergency information.
o Be prepared to evacuate.
• Ask an out-of-state relative or friend to be the "family contact" in case your family is
separated during a flood.
 • Make sure everyone in your family knows the name, address, and phone number of this
contact person.
• Buy and install sump pumps with back-up power.
• Have a licensed electrician raise electric components (switches, sockets, circuit breakers
and wiring) at least 12" above your home's projected flood elevation.
• For drains, toilets, and other sewer connections, install backflow valves or plugs to
prevent floodwaters from entering.
• Anchor fuel tanks. An unanchored tank in your basement can be torn free by flood
waters, and the broken supply line can contaminate your basement. An unanchored tank
outside can be swept downstream, where it can damage other houses.
• If your washer and dryer are in the basement, elevate them on masonry or pressure-
treated lumber at least 12" above the projected flood elevation.
• Place the furnace and water heater on masonry blocks or concrete at least 12" above the
projected flood elevation.
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Buy Flood Insurance!

• One of the most important things that you can do to protect your home and family before
a flood is to purchase a flood insurance policy
• You can obtain one through your insurance company or agent. Flood insurance is
guaranteed through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), administered by the
Federal Emergency Management Agency. Your homeowner's insurance does not cover
flood damage.
• Don't wait until a flood is coming to purchase your policy. It normally takes 30 days after
purchase for a flood insurance policy to go into effect
• For more information about the NFIP and flood insurance, read the information on the
FloodSmart.gov web site, contact your insurance company or agent, or call the NFIP at 1-
888-FLOOD29 or TDD# 1-800-427-5593.

What Should I Do During a Flood?

Now, the floodwaters are rising, and there's nothing you can do to stop them. But there are things
you can do to make sure your family stays safe until the water levels drop again.

• Fill bathtubs, sinks, and jugs with clean water in case water becomes contaminated.
Sanitize the sinks and tubs first by using bleach. Rinse, then fill with clean water.
• Listen to a battery-operated radio for the latest storm information.
• If local authorities instruct you to do so, turn off all utilities at the main power switch and
close the main gas valve.
• If told to evacuate your home, do so immediately.
• If the waters start to rise inside your house before you have evacuated, retreat to the
second floor, the attic, and if necessary, the roof.
• Floodwaters may carry raw sewage, chemical waste and other disease-spreading
substances. If you've come in contact with floodwaters, wash your hands with soap and
disinfected water.
• Avoid walking through floodwaters. As little as six inches of moving water can knock
you off your feet.
• Don't drive through a flooded area. If you come upon a flooded road, turn around and go
another way. A car can be carried away by just 2 feet of flood water.
• Electric current passes easily through water, so stay away from downed power lines and
electrical wires.
• Look out for animals -- especially snakes. Animals lose their homes in floods, too.

What Should I Do After A Flood?

Your community has been flooded, and your property has suffered flood damage. Stay calm and
stay safe in the days ahead by following these instructions.

• FIRST STEP: If your home has suffered damage, call the agent who handles your flood
insurance to file a claim. If you are unable to stay in your home, make sure to say where
you can be reached.
• To make filing your claim easier, take photos of any water in the house and save
damaged personal property. If necessary, place these items outside the home. An
insurance adjuster will need to see what's been damaged in order to process your claim.
• Check for structural damage before re-entering your home. Don't go in if there is a
chance of the building collapsing.
• Upon re-entering your property, do not use matches, cigarette lighters or other open
flames since gas may be trapped inside. If you smell gas or hear hissing, open a window,
leave quickly, and call the gas company from a neighbor's home.
• Keep power off until an electrician has inspected your system for safety.
• Check for sewage and water line damage. If you suspect damage, avoid using the toilets
and the tap and call a plumber.
• Throw away any food -- including canned goods -- that has come in contact with
floodwaters.
• Until local authorities declare your water supply to be safe, boil water for drinking and
food preparation.
 • Make sure to follow local building codes and ordinances when rebuilding. Use flood-
resistant materials and techniques to protect your property from future flood damage.
• Salvage water-damaged books, heirlooms and photographs with restoration tips from the
NFIP.

Check For Hazards When Returning Home

Going back into your home can be dangerous because flooding can cause structural, electrical
and other hazards. Physical dangers are not necessarily over after the water goes down. Hazards
are not always obvious. They can be potentially life-threatening if precautions are not taken.

Please be mindful of the following safety tips when returning home after a flood, hurricane or
severe storm:

 Turn off the electricity. Even if the power company has turned off electricity to the area, make
certain your house's power supply is disconnected.
 If you suspect a gas leak or smell gas, leave your home immediately and call the gas
company from a neighbor's house.
 Enter carefully. If the door sticks at the top, it could mean your ceiling is ready to fall. If you
force the door open, wait outside the doorway in case debris falls.
 Check the ceiling for signs of sagging. Wind, rain, or deep flooding may wet plaster or
wallboard. It is very heavy and dangerous if it falls.
 Make sure the electricity is off and hose down the house to remove health hazards left behind
by floodwater mud. Shovel out as much mud as possible. Remove water quickly using a mop or
squeegee.

Filing a Flood Insurance Claim

If your community has been flooded, and your property or home has suffered flood damage,
please follow these instructions to file your flood insurance claim.

Immediately:

• Call your agent or insurance company. Have the following information with you when
you place your call: (1) the name of your insurance company (your agent may write
policies for more than one company); (2) your policy number; and (3) a telephone
number/e-mail address where you can be reached.
• When you file your claim, ask for an approximate time frame during which an adjustor
can be expected to visit your home so you can plan accordingly.

Once You Have Reported Your Loss

• An adjustor will work with you to calculate the value of the damage and prepare a repair
estimate.
Please keep your agent advised if your contact information changes. If you are still in a shelter or
cannot be easily reached, please provide the name of a designated relative or point-of-contact
who can reach you.

Before The Adjustor Arrives

• Local officials may require the disposal of damaged items. If you dispose of items, please
keep a swatch or other sample of damaged item(s) for the adjustor.
• Separate damaged items from undamaged items. If necessary, place items outside the
home.
• Take photos. Take photos of any water in the house and damaged personal property.
Your adjustor will need evidence of the damage and damaged items (i.e.: cut swatches
from carpeting, curtains, chairs) to prepare your repair estimate.
• Make a list of damaged or lost items and include their age and value where possible. If
possible, have receipts for those items available for the adjustor.
• If you have damage estimates prepared by a contractor(s), provide them to the adjustor
since they will be considered in the preparation of your repair estimate.
• Contact your insurance company if an adjustor has not been assigned to you within
several days.
Main Content

Photograph by Jim Richardson

There are few places on Earth where people need not be concerned about flooding. Any place
where rain falls is vulnerable, although rain is not the only impetus for flood.

A flood occurs when water overflows or inundates land that's normally dry. This can happen in a
multitude of ways. Most common is when rivers or streams overflow their banks. Excessive rain,
a ruptured dam or levee, rapid ice melting in the mountains, or even an unfortunately placed
beaver dam can overwhelm a river and send it spreading over the adjacent land, called a
floodplain. Coastal flooding occurs when a large storm or tsunami causes the sea to surge inland.

Most floods take hours or even days to develop, giving residents ample time to prepare or
evacuate. Others generate quickly and with little warning. These flash floods can be extremely
dangerous, instantly turning a babbling brook into a thundering wall of water and sweeping
everything in its path downstream.

Disaster experts classify floods according to their likelihood of occurring in a given time period.
A hundred-year flood, for example, is an extremely large, destructive event that would
theoretically be expected to happen only once every century. But this is a theoretical number. In
reality, this classification means there is a one-percent chance that such a flood could happen in
any given year. Over recent decades, possibly due to global climate change, hundred-year floods
have been occurring worldwide with frightening regularity.

Moving water has awesome destructive power. When a river overflows its banks or the sea
drives inland, structures poorly equipped to withstand the water's strength are no match. Bridges,
houses, trees, and cars can be picked up and carried off. The erosive force of moving water can
drag dirt from under a building's foundation, causing it to crack and tumble.

In the United States, where flood mitigation and prediction is advanced, floods do about $6
billion worth of damage and kill about 140 people every year. A 2007 report by the Organization
for Economic Cooperation and Development found that coastal flooding alone does some $3
trillion in damage worldwide. In China's Yellow River valley, where some of the world's worst
floods have occurred, millions of people have perished in floods during the last century.

When floodwaters recede, affected areas are often blanketed in silt and mud. The water and
landscape can be contaminated with hazardous materials, such as sharp debris, pesticides, fuel,
and untreated sewage. Potentially dangerous mold blooms can quickly overwhelm water-soaked
structures. Residents of flooded areas can be left without power and clean drinking water,
leading to outbreaks of deadly waterborne diseases like typhoid, hepatitis A, and cholera.

But flooding, particularly in river floodplains, is as natural as rain and has been occurring for
millions of years. Famously fertile floodplains like the Mississippi Valley in the American
Midwest, the Nile River valley in Egypt, and the Tigris-Euphrates in the Middle East have
supported agriculture for millennia because annual flooding has left millions of tons of nutrient-
rich silt deposits behind.

Most flood destruction is attributable to humans' desire to live near picturesque coastlines and in
river valleys. Aggravating the problem is a tendency for developers to backfill and build on
wetlands that would otherwise act as natural flood buffers.

Many governments mandate that residents of flood-prone areas purchase flood insurance and
build flood-resistant structures. Massive efforts to mitigate and redirect inevitable floods have
resulted in some of the most ambitious engineering efforts ever seen, including New Orleans's
extensive levee system and massive dikes and dams in the Netherlands. And highly advanced
computer modeling now lets disaster authorities predict with amazing accuracy where floods will
occur and how severe they're likely to be.