How To Prepare For A Flood In A High-Risk Area

CONTENTS

• What areas in the UK are high-risk?
• How do you know if you live in a high-risk area?
• How to prepare for a flood
• What to do during a flood
• What to do when a flood has damaged your property
• Get in touch

One in every six properties in the UK is at risk of being affected by a flood, with 26% of those properties being commercial. Many don't know what to do when a flood destroys their business or home, causing confusion and anxiety in the aftermath.

At ICE Cleaning, we provide extensive flood restoration services to commercial and domestic properties. Our expert technicians use industry-leading tools and solutions to make sure the affected are is safe and clean before leaving.

Read on to learn how to prepare for a flood in a high-risk area.

What areas in the UK are high-risk?

Three different types of flooding can occur in the UK during heavy rain, high tide waves, or rising river waters. These are coastal floods, river floods, and flash floods. Below are the areas more likely to flood:

Coastal Flooding

• Cornwall
• Hull and Great Yarmouth
• Sussex and Kent

River Flooding

• Somerset
• Essex
• Norfolk

Flash Floods

• Cumbria
• Lincolnshire
• Yorkshire

Coastal flooding is regarded as one of the worst kinds of flooding due to the damage saltwater causes, and climate change has only exacerbated this. Saltwater will harm your home's electrical components, and it can also break down building materials that keep your property from suffering structural damage.

How do you know if you live in a high-risk area?

The quickest way to find out if you live in an area where floods are a possibility is by looking up your postcode on your government's website:

• England
• Scotland
• Wales
• Northern Ireland

If you have recently bought a property or land you plan to build or expand on, you may need to do a flood risk assessment. This will help you discover the flood risk for the property you have purchased, and upon request, you can get assessment data.

Check the local flood risk often as the environment changes over time. You could be in danger regardless of where you live as surface water, overflowing sewers, and groundwater are common causes of other types of floods.

How to prepare for a flood

The British Red Cross have plenty of advice and resources to help you prepare for a flood in your area. You can download their emergency app and set up alerts for your county so that you will be informed early of any flooding and can begin preparations.

Stay aware of local weather warnings via your weather app or the Met Office. You should also consider taking a first aid course in the event you or someone else gets injured during a flood in the future.

Should a flood happen, you should first inform neighbours and pack an emergency kit with things like phone chargers, food, water, and medical supplies. Next, you follow these steps to keep people safe and minimise flood damage:

• Shut and lock all windows and doors but ensure escape is possible
• Take photographs around your home or business before and after the flood to collect evidence for any insurance claims
• Move any sentimental or important items and documents upstairs or into the attic
• Move vehicles to higher ground
• Check your property’s insurance policy to see if flood damages are covered

What to do during a flood

If a flood could endanger your life, you should evacuate with your friends, family and pets. You must contact emergency services to inform them of the current danger and send help immediately.

You should stay away from the water, get to higher ground if possible, and keep children or pets away from the floodwater. If you inhale, ingest or touch floodwater then you may be at risk of:

• Wound infections
• Skin rashes or infections
• Tetanus
• Leptospirosis
• Gastrointestinal illness
• Inhalation of toxic gases

What to do when a flood has damaged your property

You will need to take some steps to ensure your safety and that of others who may live or work at the water-damaged property:

• Turn off the mains power
• Dispose of any food or water that has touched the floodwater
• Only drink boiled tap water or bottled water
• Find temporary housing
• Inform your insurance company of the damages
• Seek medical advice if you touched the floodwater
• Contact flood clean-up services

Take pictures of the damage for your insurance company and any flood restoration services that may visit your home. You should not stay in a flood-damaged home for your safety and let flood-damage cleaners deal with it.

Kitchens or bathrooms could be at further risk of mould due to the grout and silicone which makes it harder to remove and encourages growth. Mould growing in these areas will contaminate where you cook, clean, prepare food, and eat, thus putting you at further risk of becoming ill.

Flooded kitchen cleaning services must deal with this area head-on due to these direct risks to your health, and it should be tackled as soon as possible to keep your food and water free of contamination.

Get in touch

ICE Cleaning is a professional flood restoration and damage cleaning company. We can be on-site within a matter of hours in an emergency, and ensure a safe and thorough clean-up.

Our professional cleaners are available day and night, 365 days a year, and you can inquire about our services by calling us at 0208 066 0360 or emailing us at enquiries@icecleaning.co.uk.