CITY'S TERRORISM THREAT ALERT LEVEL is at Yellow - 3 (Elevated). If department personnel or the public have information or concerns about suspicious activity related to potential terrorism, they should call 1-877-ATHREAT, or 1-877-284-7328 or 911 in the case of a life-threatening emergency.

There are no specific threats to the City’s safety and security. City personnel are on a high level of alert.

Fact Sheet: Floods And Flash Floods

Before, During and After
Nobody can stop a flood. But if you are faced with one, there are actions you can take to protect your family and keep your property losses to a minimum.

Mitigation helps! It lessens the damaging effects from flooding. Participating in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and enforcing sound floodplain management techniques are steps your community can undertake. Constructing barriers such as levees will also help reduce the amount of damage to your home and crops, while purchasing flood insurance reduces the financial burden should a flood or flash flood occur.

The most important thing is to make sure your family is safe. Go to: http://www.fema.gov/hazards/floods/floodf.shtm

Helpful Links:
Repairing Your Flooded Home
English:
http://www.redcross.org/static/file_cont333_lang0_150.pdf
Spanish:
http://www.redcross.org/images/pdfs/repairingFloodedHomeSp.pdf
Coping With a Flood – Before During and After
http://www.fema.gov/nfip/coping.shtm
Fact Sheet: Floods And Flash Floods
http://www.fema.gov/hazards/floods/floodf.shtm
Tips on Handling Your Flood Insurance Claim
http://www.fema.gov/nfip/tips.shtm
Federal Disaster Assistance and National Flood Insurance
http://www.fema.gov/nfip/know.shtm
Protecting Your Home From Future Flood Damage
http://www.fema.gov/nwz97/prothom.shtm
Flood Insurance – Spanish
http://www.fema.gov/nfip/osi.shtm
Flood Insurance Part II – Spanish
http://www.fema.gov/nfip/seguro.shtm
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Your home and its contents may look beyond hope, but many of your belongings
can be restored. If you do things right, your flooded home can be cleaned up,
dried out, rebuilt, and reoccupied sooner than you think.
Play it safe. The dangers are not over when the water goes down. Your home's
foundation may have been weakened, the electrical system may have shorted
out, and floodwaters may have left behind things that could make you sick. When
in doubt, throw it out. Don't risk injury or infection.
Ask for help. Many people can do a lot of the clean up and repairs discussed in
this book. But if you have technical questions or do not feel comfortable doing
something, get professional help. If there is a federal disaster declaration, a
telephone "hotline" will often be publicized to provide information about public,
private, and voluntary agency programs to help you recover from the flood.
Floodproof. It is very likely that your home will be flooded again someday. You
can save a lot of money by floodproofing as you repair and rebuild. See Step 8.
You should also prepare for the next flood by buying flood insurance and writing
a flood response plan.
Table of Contents
Step 1. Take Care of Yourself First
Protect yourself and your family from stress, fatigue, and health hazards that
follow a flood.
Step 2. Give Your Home First Aid
Once it is safe to go back in, protect your home and contents from further
damage.
Step 3. Get Organized
Some things are not worth repairing and some things may be too complicated or
expensive for you to do by yourself. A recovery plan can take these things into
account and help you make the most of your time and money.
Step 4. Dry Out Your Home
Floodwaters damage materials, leave mud, silt and unknown contaminants, and
promote the growth of mildew. You need to dry your home to reduce these
hazards and the damage they cause.
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Step 5. Restore the Utilities
The rest of your work will be much easier if you have heat, electricity, clean
water, and sewage disposal.
Step 6. Clean Up
The walls, floors, closets, shelves, contents and any other flooded parts of your
home should be thoroughly washed and disinfected.
Step 7. Check on Financial Assistance
Voluntary agencies, businesses, insurance, and government disaster programs
can help you through recovery.
Step 8. Rebuild and Floodproof
Take your time to rebuild correctly and make improvements that will protect your
building from damage by the next flood.
Step 9. Prepare for the Next Flood
Protect yourself from the next flood with flood insurance, a flood response plan,
and community flood protection programs. This step also includes sources to go
to for additional assistance.
What to Do After a Flood or Flash Flood
•
Seek necessary medical care at the nearest hospital or clinic.
Contaminated flood waters lead to a greater possibility of infection. Severe
injuries will require medical attention.
•
Help a neighbor who may require special assistance--infants, elderly
people, and people with disabilities. Elderly people and people with
disabilities may require additional assistance. People who care for them or
who have large families may need additional assistance in emergency
situations.
•
Avoid disaster areas. Your presence might hamper rescue and other
emergency operations, and put you at further risk from the residual effects
of floods, such as contaminated waters, crumbled roads, landslides,
mudflows, and other hazards.
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•
Continue to listen to a NOAA Weather Radio or local radio or
television stations and return home only when authorities indicate it
is safe to do so. Flood dangers do not end when the water begins to
recede; there may be flood-related hazards within your community, which
you could hear about from local broadcasts.
•
Stay out of any building if flood waters remain around the building.
Flood waters often undermine foundations, causing sinking, floors can
crack or break and buildings can collapse.
•
Avoid entering ANY building (home, business, or other) before local
officials have said it is safe to do so. Buildings may have hidden
damage that makes them unsafe. Gas leaks or electric or waterline
damage can create additional problems.
•
Report broken utility lines to the appropriate authorities. Reporting
potential hazards will get the utilities turned off as quickly as possible,
preventing further hazard and injury. Check with your utility company now
about where broken lines should be reported.
•
Avoid smoking inside buildings. Smoking in confined areas can cause
fires.
•
When entering buildings, use extreme caution. Building damage may
have occurred where you least expect it. Watch carefully every step you
take.
o
Wear sturdy shoes. The most common injury following a disaster
is cut feet.
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o
Use battery-powered lanterns or flashlights when examining
buildings. Battery-powered lighting is the safest and easiest,
preventing fire hazard for the user, occupants, and building.
o
Examine walls, floors, doors, staircases, and windows to make
sure that the building is not in danger of collapsing.
o
Inspect foundations for cracks or other damage. Cracks and
damage to a foundation can render a building uninhabitable.
o
Look for fire hazards. There may be broken or leaking gas lines,
flooded electrical circuits, or submerged furnaces or electrical
appliances. Flammable or explosive materials may travel from
upstream. Fire is the most frequent hazard following floods.
o
Check for gas leaks. If you smell gas or hear a blowing or hissing
noise, open a window and quickly leave the building. Turn off the
gas at the outside main valve if you can and call the gas company
from a neighbor's home. If you turn off the gas for any reason, a
professional must turn it back on.
o
Look for electrical system damage. If you see sparks or broken
or frayed wires, or if you smell burning insulation, turn off the
electricity at the main fuse box or circuit breaker. If you have to step
in water to get to the fuse box or circuit breaker, call an electrician
first for advice. Electrical equipment should be checked and dried
before being returned to service.
o
Check for sewage and waterline damage. If you suspect sewage
lines are damaged, avoid using the toilets and call a plumber. If
water pipes are damaged, contact the water company and avoid
using water from the tap. You can obtain safe water from
undamaged water heaters or by melting ice cubes.
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o
Watch out for animals, especially poisonous snakes that may
have come into buildings with the flood waters. Use a stick to
poke through debris. Flood waters flush snakes and many
animals out of their homes.
o
Watch for loose plaster, drywall, and ceilings that could fall.
o
Take pictures of the damage, both of the building and its
contents, for insurance claims.
o
Throw away food that has come in contact with flood waters.
Some canned foods may be salvageable. If the cans are dented or
damaged, throw them away. Food contaminated by flood waters
can cause severe infections.
o
If water is of questionable purity, boil or add bleach, and distill
drinking water before using. (See information on water treatment
under the "Disaster Supplies Kit" section.) Wells inundated by flood
waters should be pumped out and the water tested for purity before
drinking. If in doubt, call your local public health authority. Ill health
effects often occur when people drink water contaminated with
bacteria and germs.
o
Pump out flooded basements gradually (about one-third of the
water per day) to avoid structural damage. If the water is
pumped completely in a short period of time, pressure from water-
saturated soil on the outside could cause basement walls to
collapse.
o
Service damaged septic tanks, cesspools, pits, and leaching
systems as soon as possible. Damaged sewage systems are
health hazards.

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