Flooding is perhaps one of the cruelest disasters. When a flood occurs, it leaves most of the possessions inside the home. The cleanup process involves painstakingly throwing away countless precious memories.
As a disaster relief volunteer, I’ve helped clean up hundreds of homes after devastating floods. If there are any tips I could offer anyone preparing for a flood, this is what I would tell them.
The first few items on the list are the priority. From there, you should only perform them if you have time.
1. Get to safety
Obviously, getting to a safe location is your biggest priority. Nothing else on this list is worth risking your life for. If you have been told to evacuate immediately, then evacuate immediately.
You should never delay departing if an immediate evacuation order has been given. Keep your phone on, use your weather radio, and listen to local weather to know if you need to evacuate.
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2. Plan your evacuation route and destination
Find a safe route during a flood
Do you know your evacuation route? Pull up Google maps and look for road closures and slowdowns. Be prepared for your trip to take significantly longer than it normally would, especially during a large evacuation.
For a link to your state’s official DOT travel map, see our Travel Dashboard.
Know how to find an emergency shelter
Do you have friends you could stay with until the flooding is over? Nearby hotels quickly fill up during flood and hurricane evacuations. You may have to travel many extra miles to find a hotel with an available room. The American Red Cross and other non-profit organizations open up emergency shelters during evacuations.
To find your closest emergency shelter, text “shelter” and your ZIP code to 43362. Or go to FEMA.gov/SHELTER.
3. Prepare to leave
Pack your go-bag in your vehicle.
A go-bag includes the most essential items you’ll need in an emergency. Make sure you have any needed prescriptions and medication.
Prepare your pets
Do you have pet food and some water in the car? Pack a couple of treats to lure them back if they try to wander off. Are the leash and crate all ready to go?
Evacuate early
If you can, leave early to add in extra time for detours, road closures, and traffic.
See our Flooding Dashboard
4. Fuel up your car
You don’t want to be rushing around looking for gas when you need to be evacuating.
What should you do right before a flood?
The tips below assume that you have enough time to complete the above tasks safely, with plenty of time to spare.
5. Drive additional vehicles to higher ground
Flood water ruins vehicles. If you have friends that live at a higher elevation, see if you can park your extra vehicle at their place.
6. Save the photo albums
This is one of the most heartbreaking things I see after a flood. Pictures scattered across neighborhoods, muddied and rain-soaked. The chances of them finding their way back to their owner are slim, but even if they do, they will never be the same.
Store the albums up high and in a watertight container
Put the photo albums in a plastic tub that seals well and place them on top of a cabinet or on your highest shelf.
Make a quick digital archive
How? Pull out your phone and take a picture of each page. If you’re in a rush, have someone hold the camera and simply take a video while flipping through each page. It won’t be as perfect as scanning every photo individually, but it’ll be much quicker and you’ll still have something if they are lost in the flood. Don’t forget to scan the cookbook if you have family recipes.
Take a quick photo and save copies of birth certificates, passports, medical records, and insurance papers.
7. Grab the backup hard drive and other important documents
We don’t have as many physical photo albums as we used to, so be sure to grab your backup hard drive with all your pictures and important documents on it.
8. Take a video of your home before you leave
Walkthrough each room of your home while recording a video on your phone.
This gives you a quick summary of what items you own and will be helpful when filing paperwork or insurance claims later stating what you lost. This is an easy way to help you remember everything you had.
Open up cabinets and drawers, use a flashlight to see better in the closet.
9. Move items up higher to prevent flood damage
Watertight boxes
Grab some plastic tubs that make a tight seal. Put your important keepsakes in these boxes and get them as high off the ground as you can. You can place them on a table, bed, or other furniture or you can put them on the top shelf in your closet.
Move electronics higher
Move your electronic gear to the top shelf.
Stack your furniture and use the attic
Floodwaters may only be a couple of inches high or a few feet high. By stacking furniture off the ground, you lower the chance of it being destroyed by floodwater.
No guarantee what you do will work
Mold and humidity can destroy items as well. Rapid water may knock items over.
10. Empty the fridge
If you know your home will flood, unplug the refrigerator, empty everything out, and leave the doors open.
Dump out the milk, sour cream, meat, and other items that will have a potent smell after spoiling. A refrigerator is one of the worst smells after a flood. Tossing out some of the worst culprits ahead of time may knock down its potency later. You can leave the doors propped open too. This won’t save your refrigerator but may help with odor during the cleanup.
11. Turn off the utilities (water, gas, and electric)
Locate the gas and water shutoffs for your home. Make sure you have the right tools to close each one.
Clean water can be a precious resource during a disaster. Turning off the water will prevent any broken pipes inside the house from leaking.
Broken gas lines can cause fires and explosions during a disaster.
Unplug your devices. Shutting off the main breaker can help prevent electrical shock. You should always treat any wires as live, especially when returning home to a disaster.
Check with city officials and professionals before turning the utilities back on.
12. Check your gutters and drains
Clean out any clogged gutters and drains to help water drain faster.
13. Bring in outdoor items
Keep items from washing away by bringing bikes, trash cans, and lawn furniture inside.
14. Check your sump pump
Does it look like it’s in good condition? Is your battery backup charged and working if installed?
15. Review FEMA’s priorities
FEMA has five “Ps” it wants you to remember when evacuating your house. They are:
- People (life safety first)
- Prescriptions
- Papers (IDs, insurance, etc.)
- Personal needs (food, water, hygiene)
- Priceless items (precious irreplaceable objects)
What is mud out?
How to help after a flood
Long term flood mitigation strategies
If you are in a location prone to flooding, you should consider these strategies as well. Consider implementing them if you are rebuilding after a flood as well.
Move your electrical outlets higher
The heights of floodwaters can vary greatly. Elevating your electrical outlets by a foot or two can reduce the amount of electrical work required after a flood.
Elevate your home
Perhaps one of the more costly suggestions, homes that are in minor flood plains can be raised, even after they have been built. This process involves jacking the home up to allow some extra space under the home for floodwaters.
Secure and raise outdoor items
Air conditioners, heat pumps, and other large outdoor devices can be raised off the ground. Fuel tanks can be anchored to the ground to prevent them from washing away or from damaging nearby buildings when swept away.
More long term flood mitigation ideas
Seal foundation and basement cracks
Install Sump pumps and sewer backflow valves
Purchase flood insurance
Stay weather aware with the Disaster Dashboard
Knowing the local forecast and trends can really help when preparing for a flood. With the tools on the Disaster Dashboard, you can scroll down to the Flooding heading and see river levels, the flood outlook, and the excessive rainfall outlook.
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