Organise Your Home For The Impending Flooding In Your Area

By Author: David Doilap
Total Articles: 53
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Do not get taken unprepared by an unannounced flood

Strong storms and high winds often cause flooding, even in areas that are not prone to such an event. Weather conditions have become extreme and regions that were once deprived of water can now encounter heavy rainfall in a single day. As a result everybody should be prepared for anything, particularly flooding.

You may not receive fair warning of a flash flood, but you can certainly take preventive steps to protect your house from drastic damage.

Make sure the water does not break in your house.

If you are already aware of an expected storm or heavy downpour in your area, or if your house is located in a flood-prone area, you must act immediately, protecting your doors and windows using plywood and metal sheets and shielding them using sandbags. Silicone sealant applied to the joints of shutters and glazing is effective in preventing water seepage. Although having a short lifetime these materials are very effective in preventing short duration floods and keeping things dry.

You must shut off all your utilities.

Always keep in mind ...
... to switch off the essential utilities like gas, water and electricity at the mains switches and valves. All electrical equipment must be unplugged and stored at the highest floor level to avoid flood damage. Storage on the second floor ensures that items can remain dry and far from the influence of water, as in most cases the water level will not reach the level of the upstairs floors inside homes.

Pay particular attention to your appliances and house furniture.

Check that the high priced furniture and equipment are stored at height or on the upper floors.
For those who live in houses without upper floors like a bungalow, it is better to store the valuables on blocks or bricks. Be sure to remove carpets, curtains and even internal doors.
When all these goods are stored at high locations, they stand a much better chance of weathering the incoming water.

The second floor of the house can be used for putting down all the important papers and pictures. To ensure total safety, you can put them up in waterproof containers like the ones used for storing food. If not, you should put important papers in sealed plastic bags to ensure that they are protected from water.

Now focusing on objects external to your hose like garden furniture, keep them in a secure place. It can be dangerous for others if these articles get caught in floodwater easily. Items which are expensive and can easily float away in water should be kept in a closed place like a garage. Wheelbarrow should also be kept in a garage, else it can also float away.

FThe following are the steps to be followed in case a flood warning is announced.

The information provided is of great importance in such crises.

To keep yourself updated about the broadcasts and announcements, listening to the radio. Ensure that you act in cooperation with the directions of the emergency services and local authorities. They may need you to move out of the house, which you must do quickly to avoid aggravating the risk to you and the emergency services.

As electricity if often unavailable in such cases plan to complete all preparatory work during day. It is much more difficult and unsafe to do things in the dark. Keeping batteries and torches in places you will remember is a handy tip for coping with an emergency.

Share the information with your neighbors, particularly the old people, so that they can also prepare themselves.

Try to spend as much time as possible in the house rather than exposing yourself to risk outside. This is to ensure your safety as the flood water could be dangerous. Remember that even six inches of rapid currents can cause you to fall and even two feet of water can lift a car!.

Be sure to safeguard your pets and cars in secure places. As soon as you come to know about the flood alerts, relocating to the second floor of your house is recommended. There maybe objects floating in the water, so do not attempt to swim through raging flood. There are chances of getting swept away or collisions with objects present in the water.

Avoid contact with floodwater, as it may be unclean or have become contaminated by contact with sewage waste. It really will be a terrible situation if you survive the flood and later fell ill owing to contaminated water. The frontlines of waterbodies, such as bridges, riverbanks and sea barriers are the most risky places in a flood, so just stay away from such locations. Cases of floodwater demolishing or bringing down bridges and defenses are frequently recorded.
David is the author of Clear Blocked Drainage, a web site which contains help and advice on treating flooding problems. http://www.blocked-drains.info Please visit for more information on how to fix your drains problems.