Even if you live in a low-risk area, remember that anywhere it rains, it can flood. Just because you haven't experienced a flood in the past, doesn't meant you won't in the future. Flood risk isn't just based on history; it's also based on a number of factors including rainfall, topography, flood-control measures, river-flow and tidal-surge data, and changes due to new construction and development. There are many things you can do before a flood threatens to be prepared.
- Get Flood Insurance! Most homeowner's insurance policies do not cover damage from floods. However, because our community participate in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), you can purchase a separate flood insurance policy. This insurance is backed by the Federal government and is available to everyone, even properties that have been flooded. If you already have flood insurance, check to make sure your policy includes contents coverage. Don't wait for the next flood to buy insurance protection! In most cases, there is a 30-day waiting period before coverage takes effect.
- Build an emergency kit and make a family communications plan. Information on creating an emergency kit and developing a communications plan can be found at http://www.ready.gov/floods or http://www.floridadisaster.org, as well as the FloodSmart website, which has information on developing plans for families and pets. The Red Cross has also developed a Flood Safety Checklist and http://www.floodsmart.gov has various other resources to help you prepare.
- Include written instructions in your emergency kit for how to turn off electricity, gas, and water authorities advise you to do so. Teach adult family members how to shut off utilities. Teach children how to call 911, police and fire, and which radio station to tune to for emergency management.
- Plan and practice alternative evacuation routes. Your plan should include the safest route to where you plan to ride out the storm, public shelters, or evacuation routes out of the area. Evacuation routes are available on the Leon County Emergency Information webpage.
- Find out if you live in a flood prone area. If you are new to the area ask neighbors, your local public works, planning and zoning, or emergency management organizations about local flood history.
- If you live in a frequently flooded area, stockpile emergency building materials like plywood, lumber, nails, hammers, saw, plastic sheeting, shovels, plastic bags, and sandbags.
- Consider raising or otherwise protecting your water heater, air conditioning equipment, electric panel, furnace, and other important appliances if they are likely to be flooded.
- Give serious consideration to purchasing flood insurance. Keep insurance policies and contact information where you can find it in a hurry and take it with you. Keep an up to date inventory of household contents and prized possessions, including brand and model descriptions, serial numbers, purchase prices, etc.
- Prepare an inventory of household items, including valuables, vital records and irreplaceable keepsakes you will want to take with you.
- Safeguard Important Papers by storing them in a water-proof, fire-proof locked box. As a last resort, store important papers in sealed plastic bags in a secure area. Double bagging may further reduce the risk of water damage. Among the papers you may want to store safely at home or plan to take with you are:
- Family advisors' names and addresses
- Educational, employment and health records
- Copies of birth and marriage certificates, insurance policies, investment records
- Driver license numbers, income tax returns, current bank balances, loan payment books
- Guarantees and warranties, appliance manuals, rental property records
- Household inventory, safe-deposit records, copy of a list of valuable papers and their locations.
- Other important documents you may want to store in a safe-deposit box include:
- Property records, deeds, titles and/or leases
- Copies of wills, birth/death and marriage certificates, divorce decrees, adoption or custody papers, citizenship papers, passports, military service records
- Lists of insurance policies, automobile bills of sale and titles, social security cards
- Government savings bonds, religious records, retirement papers, copyrights and patent
- Household inventory (and/or videotape of home contents)
- Consider protecting your property through retrofitting or mitigation projects such as relocation of a building to a site not subject to flooding, construction of floodwalls and berms to divert water from the property, or floodproofing (retrofitting) a structure.