How to Prepare Your Home for a Flood

Floods are one of the most common natural disasters in the United States, killing an average of 110 people and costing an average of $3.7 billion each year, according to the American Red Cross. Here's what you can do to be prepared.

Things You'll Need

• Candle Pantry
• Maps
• Battery Radios
• Waterproof Boxes For Valuables
• Canned Foods
• First Aid Kits
• Can Openers
• Corks Or Stoppers
• Sufficient Sandbags
• Flashlights
• Cellular Phone Batteries
• Cellular Phone Covers/carrying Cases
• Cellular Phone Minutes
• Cellular Phone Services
• Cellular Phones

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Instructions

• 1

  Understand the damage that floods can cause, such as rolling boulders, trees ripped out of the ground, buildings and bridges destroyed and debris slides.

• 2

  Ask your local planning and zoning office whether your property is above or below the flood level, and find out whether your area has a history of flooding.

• 3

  Become familiar with the warning signs in your community in case a flood occurs.

• 4

  Learn what the community's evacuation plan is so you can be prepared.

• 5

  Make sure you have flood insurance, since most home owners' insurance will not reimburse you for flood damage.

• 6

  Keep important documents - including insurance policies, birth certificates and passports - in a waterproof box where you can easily access them.

• 7

  If your furnace, water heater or electricity panel is on the first floor of your home, consider having it moved to the attic, where it is less likely to be damaged by floodwater.

• 8

  Plug sewer traps with check valves, which prevent floodwater from backing up into the drains of your home. In an emergency, you can also use large corks or stoppers to plug sinks and tubs.

• 9

  Check your local building codes to find out whether they will permit you to build flood walls or other barriers around your home to prevent water from entering the building.

• 10

  Protect basement walls by sealing them with waterproofing compounds so water can't come in through cracks.

• 11

  Keep a battery-operated radio in your home in case your power goes out.

• 12

  Talk to your family ahead of time to decide where you will go if a flood occurs, so everyone will know what to do.

• 13

  Prepare some emergency supplies, such as canned food, a handheld can opener, a flashlight, batteries and first aid materials.