Flash floods

Floods kill more people each year than any other severe weather hazard, and more than half of flood drownings happen when someone drives into the water. In many cities the main danger isn't the river: it's low water crossings and the streets, dips, and highway on-ramps that fill within minutes. Deadly flash floods often happen when the water sweeps vehicles away at those crossings and ramps.

Before

• Look up your address on FEMA's flood zone map (msc.fema.gov) and on the flood alert service for your area. On a ground floor, even if you aren't in a flood zone, rainwater can come in through the patio door. Check whether your renters insurance covers flooding. Normally it doesn't: it's bought separately (NFIP) and usually has a waiting period before it takes effect.
• Store documents, medicine, and electronics in airtight bags and up high, not on the closet floor.
• Have your 72-hour bag and the pet kit ready (chapter 2).
• Locate nearby high ground you can reach on foot.
• Check whether your parking lot floods: if water collects there in normal rains, move the cars to higher ground as soon as there is a Flood Watch.
• Put the emergency numbers and the alternate route on paper, inside the car: in a flood the phone can lose signal or battery.

Family flood plan

1. Decide who picks up whom if you're separated at work or school, and which routes each person avoids.
2. Agree on a simple rule: "If the road is covered with water, no one crosses; we wait or turn around, even if we arrive late." Make sure all the adults in the home accept it.
3. Choose a waiting spot on high ground along each daily route (a store, a gas station, a parking lot) where you can stop until the water goes down. In most flash floods the water drops within hours.
4. Have a ready-made message: "I'm okay, waiting at [place], I won't cross." Sending it keeps another family member from going out to look for you.

During

1. With a Flash Flood Warning, don't go out driving unless necessary. Many deaths happen at night, when you can't see that the road is covered.
2. Turn Around, Don't Drown. If you see water over the road, turn around. Never go around a barrier: the pavement underneath may have crumbled.
3. If the car stalls in rising water, abandon it immediately if you can do so safely and move to high ground. If the water is already moving forcefully around the car, stay inside and climb onto the roof if water starts coming in; call 911.
4. If the car goes into the water and sinks: seatbelt off, lower or break the window (don't wait for the car to fill), get out through the window and swim to the shore.
5. Do not walk through moving water. Besides the current, there may be electrical wires, uncovered manholes, and sewage.
6. If water enters your house or apartment: shut off the electricity at the breaker panel only if you are standing in a dry spot; if there is water near the panel, do not touch it. Move to high ground or, if you cannot, ask an upstairs neighbor to let you come up.

After

• Return only when authorities say it is safe.
• Do not enter a flooded house or apartment while the power is on. If water reached the outlets, have an electrician check them.
• Floodwater is contaminated: wear boots and gloves, and wash with clean water. Throw away any food that touched the water.
• Take photos and video of all damage before cleaning up, for your insurance and your landlord or property manager.
• Dry out or remove wet carpets and panels as soon as possible to prevent mold.
• If your water utility issues a boil-water notice, follow chapter 9.