What Can I Do to Prepare for Storms & Flooding in Wilmington?

8/27/2020 (Permalink)

Floods can occur quickly and cause a large amount of damage to your home and displace you and your family. Call SERVPRO for flood damage remediation.

Wilmington is Prone to Flooding Like Many Parts of Delaware – Having a Natural Disaster Plan is Always Wise

In the United States, flooding is the most common natural disaster. It can happen in every state across the country. Making preparations for when disaster strikes removes the stress and damage to your family and Wilmington home.

Is All Flooding the Same?

Not all flooding is the same. Certain flooding happens over an extended period of heavy, steady rain. Flash flooding occurs rapidly and can occur suddenly with no warning. In the winter, when there is heavy snow and a surge of warm weather that can cause flooding. You are open to flooding whenever you live in near water, near dams, or in low lying areas. Flood damage can happen in your Wilmington home at any time.

Make A Plan

If disaster strikes, your family may not all be in the same place. An emergency plan lays out exactly what to do, so there is no confusion if something happens.

• How you will contact each other
• Where you will meet – a place for those inside the home and a place when some are not home.
• Establish an out of town contact that can help with communications in case calling is a problem locally.
• Knowing what the emergency plans are for your work, school, childcare, etc.
• Copies for babysitters and caregivers.
• Plans for what you will do with pets.
• Flood insurance policy

When you do the above, you will have prepared your family in the case of any emergency, not just flooding. Practice the plan regularly, especially if you have young children who need to know where to go should something happen.

Put Together an Emergency Supply Kit

You will want to have certain things on hand should you experience a catastrophe in the home. Putting together a kit for the house in general and individual kits for each member of the house is an excellent idea. Make sure you have a good supply of non-perishable food and bottled water. A first aid kit, flashlights, extra batteries, and a battery-powered radio are all necessary items. A backpack with clothing, a special toy for children, water, and snacks is a good idea for each person. Other things to include in your kit may be:

• Extra medical supplies and copies of prescriptions
• Sleeping bags and bedding
• Copies of important documents

• Driver’s license
• Social security cards
• Birth and marriage certificates
• Deeds
• Wills

Know What to Look For

Understanding the different weather terms for storms and flooding can help you know what is coming your way. A flood watch means just that. The weather stations are watching for potential flooding in specific areas. Tune in to the local news to keep abreast of the situation. A flash flood warning means to be ready to move to higher ground or evacuate if flooding occurs. This is the time to move sensitive belongings to higher levels as well. If a flood warning is issued, it means flooding is on its way. If an evacuation warning is given, follow it. A flash flood warning means move immediately to higher ground. Don’t attempt to drive.

Emergency Water Mitigation

If your Wilmington home does experience flood damage, SERVPRO has rapid-response teams ready to provide emergency services. They will arrive at your home as quickly as possible and assess the situation for safety and health issues. Floodwaters bring all kinds of contaminants with them, and these must get dealt with on a professional level. Don’t attempt to enter your home until it is safe to do so. After determining the structure is safe, and the biohazard issues in the water are known, water extraction begins. The drying process follows that along with sanitizing and disinfecting.

Water Restoration Begins

Our technicians are Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) certified and have years of experience dealing with floods. Once they have your home dry, the cleaning process and restoration of the building and content starts. If possible, items will be cleaned on-site. Packout services are available if that is not possible. The goal is to return your home to you, “Like it never even happened.”

Flood damage is nothing to take lightly, as it can be deadly. But our Green Team is available 24/7 to provide emergency mitigation and restoration services. Contact SERVPRO of Hockessin / Elsmere at (302) 992 - 0104 for professional flood damage restoration service. 

We’re Faster To Any Size Disaster.