Floods and Flooding - Archived EDEN Topic Page

Floods and Flooding - Archived EDEN Topic Page

Floods and Flooding - Archived EDEN Topic Page

This page contains information that was preserved in August 2017 when the EDEN website moved to this new system. The information here has not been, and will not be, updated. For more information on this topic, please use the EDEN Website Search function in the header. If you reached this page from a bookmark, please update that bookmark.

Flooding on the Mississippi River in 1993 was the inspiration for EDEN, and continues to be a major focus of EDEN activity. 2011 saw another great flood on the Mississippi - prompted by a snow melt in the uplands. In 2012 the state of New Jersey saw what is being called its "Katrina" - surge in places they never thought they would see it.

With each major flooding, the EDEN Chair communicates with Extension in the affected states, offering EDEN assistance and reminding them of the resources available on this site and through eXtension.

EDEN takes that opportunity, too, to refresh its pages and to add resources specifically requested by the affected states - to pages and to its Resource Catalog. EDEN also works closely with its primary partner agency, NIFA, to ensure that USDA knows how Extension has been affected and how Extension is serving its communities. EDEN Response Notes is theEDEN system for finding out if our Extension members need any type of assistance with disaster response and recovery, and learning about their response and recoveyr activities.

Read About Response Notes to learn why and how we use EDEN Response Notes.
Enter your Response Note using our online form (requires login).

Floods and Flood Impacts

Floods are the most common and widespread of all natural disasters--except fire. Most communities in the United States have experienced some kind of flooding, after spring rains, heavy thunderstorms, winter snow thaws, unusual rise of lakes, or surge of oceans and seas as a result of hurricanes or tsunamis.

Floods can be slow rising, especially in areas of broad expanses of flat land, where rains make their way down river, causing overflow of the banks and backflow into feeder streams. They can rise rapidly - in the mountains, at the foot of mountain streams, and during a storm surge. Just as waters may rise rapidly or slowly, the flow of floodwater may be fast or slow. If you are faced with fighting floods or trying to prevent future damage, you need to know what type of flooding occurs in your area.

For flood insurance purposes, a flood is defined as "a general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of two or more acres of normally dry land area or of two or more properties...from:

Overflow of inland or tidal waters,
Unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source, or
A mudflow" (NAIC, 2008).

Opportunities for Extension to Reduce Impacts

Floods have impacts in agriculture (land, crops, harvests), and the built environment (homes and offices). Because of these physical impacts, there is a secondary impact on mental health, as well as family and business finances. Impacts can be reduced by Extension education immediately before, after and between floods.

In addition to knowing the nature of the flood, it is important to understand that a given flood-fight or mitigation technique proven to work on one soil type may not work on another; and that a home flood proofing project suitable for one climate and style of construction may not be suitable in another.

It is relatively easy, using the Internet or the library, to find solutions to flood problems, many of which can be employed by homeowners and small business owners. Educators and consumers should always check with your local experts and officials when selecting a flood protection system, to see what local conditions and factors may influence the success of your proposed solution.

Extension also has a role in reducing future flood damage and aiding communities in their flood damage prevention programs while working within traditional Extension program areas. Some examples would include:

adding "Flood Insurance" to a First-Time Homebuyer program;
adding flood risk consideration in local community and economic development plans; and
participating in state and local hazard mitigation planning projects.

If your Extension Service provides training for newly elected community officials, the impacts of including flood-risk management in the curriculum could be enormous.

Preparedness, Messaging and Insurance Facts

Help your communities prepare

Know YOUR risk - talk to your local emergency manager
Prepare yourself and your Extension office for floodling
Help your local communities prepare to protect and recover
Help consumer clients be informed, know their risk and prepare and protect themselves

Principal messages for clientelle:

Buy flood insurance - www.floodsmart.gov (flood insurance basics page)
Turn around. Don't Drown http://www.nws.noaa.gov/os/water/tadd/
Make a disaster supply kit - one for staying, one for going
Listen for local alerts; evacuate if advised to do so by local officials
Protect your property from rising water, if possible.

Important Flood Insurance Facts

Flooding is not covered by homeowners insurance, a separate policy is required
There is a 30-day waiting period between purchase and coverage becoming effective (with a few exceptions)
Flood insurance covers damage caused by rising water - building and contents coverage is provided in two separate policies, except when written as Preferred Risk. Coverage purchased as a requirement for getting a mortgage typically covers on the building, not the contents.
Flood insurance provides up to $1,000 to protect an insured building and $1,000 to protect insured contents. Receipts are required, flood must be reasonably expected; the policy deductible is not applied. (See coverage C on the Dwelling form)
Flood insurance pays up to $30,000 toward the cost of elevating a home if it was substantially damaged by the flood and is being required to elevate before being restored (see Coverage D on the Dwelling form).

EDEN is responding to the massive flooding in South Carolina. Monitor this activity in the EDEN Helps Now section, below.

Check the Requests page to see what types of assistance South Carolina has requested and how that request is being handled.

Extension educators and agents: If you were in the path of a flood, let us know how you are. If you are engaged in flood preparedness, flood damage reduction and/or flood recovery efforts,
please SEND US A NOTE either by email or using our online form.

Click here for EDEN member institution cataloged resources tagged as Hazard=flood
Filters will be on the left nav barUse "Flooding 2015" as the event name when submitting a Response Note for this event.

Gauges, Forecasting and Outlooks

NOTE: The Carolina flooding is covered by the Southeast River Forecast Center, directly addressed at http://www.srh.noaa.gov/serfc/.

NOAA's National Weather Service (NWS) operates 13 River Forecast Centers across the United States. River Forecast Centers collect, process, and provide forecasts and information about water resources for major river basins across the country. This network is supported by the extensive gauge system of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and gauges operated by the Corps of Engineers and others. Current stages, river forecasts and precipitation can be accessed directly at http://water.weather.gov/ahps

Field report from Sea Grant

The following situation was distributed by Rick Devoe in an email to Sea Grant Director colleagues. It made its way out as the recipients extended the call for assistance to others and is printed here with the author's permission.

Please read https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/wp/2015/10/05/the-meteorology-behind-south-carolinas-catastrophic-1000-year-rainfall-event/ if you are interested in the nature of the flooding event we in the state of South Carolina just experienced.

In the Charleston area, we had anywhere from 15-25 inches of rain over three days. But I think we fared better than our inland brethren, because they do not have low tides, but do have hills and valleys and extensive river floodplains, and earthen dams, etc. that made them more susceptible to flooding events. The University of South Carolina’s main campus in Columbia, SC is closed for the week because there is no potable water available. The salinity in our coastal rivers has reached zero in some places. And the USGS folks are telling us we may have WQ issues in our rivers for the next one-to-two months as the uplands “drain themselves.” Unbelievable. But most folks in this neck of the woods are survivors, and are very good neighbors. And really, the folks in South Carolina are hanging in there, and the state will recover stronger than ever (and maybe a little bit wiser as well). But they need information.

So I am writing to you folks to seek your assistance. We established a coastal information network (SC-CIN; the “CIN” network; see the www.sccoastalinfo.org portal) some years ago which we use to coordinate and partner up outreach/extension/education efforts and resources of a host of coastal outreach partners in South Carolina (e.g., CTPs, coop extension, NOAA agencies, CZM, SCDNR-marine resources, COGs, etc.) so that constituencies (e.g., local governments) have a “one-stop” shop for their coastal information needs.

We are setting up a “SC Flood” section on the SC-CIN portal where we are placing links to available information tools, resources, manuals, how-to and how-not-to booklets, etc. for these communities and others to access. Since most if not all of you have had experiences with water and flooding, I would greatly appreciate if your program would send me links to those information resources (PDF copies are also welcome) which might be useful to our communities, businesses, and homeowners as they work to recover and restore their buildings, structures, and homes. And if you know of portals that already exist for such information, please share those as well.

- Rick Devoe, Executive Director, S.C. Sea Grant Consortium

EDEN Helps Now!

EDEN has reached out to the EDEN delegates and Sea Grant extension in South Carolina, through the flood NEIL and Sea Grant member liaison, offering assistance.

When "noting" your response or assistance, select "Flooding 2015" as the Event Name in EDEN Response Notes. Please submit notes when your Extension system offers assistance to Extension in the impacted areas. EDEN and eXtension will be submitting notes to document our efforts.

Resources found here are gathered by replies to email requests for specific types of resources, or were mentioned in Response Notes submitted by EDEN members during the current season. Resources submitted in previous seasons may have been cataloged in the EDEN Resource Catalog, integrated into the pages in this topic area, or remain listed on the Resources Collected page of this area.

Some resources may be useful for other disasters; some resources sent in during recovery from other disasters may be useful in this one. See, for example, the tornado event Resources Collected page, the West Nile Virus page, and the Featured Resources section of the 2011: Spring Melt page.

Please send responses or requests for resources to:
Pat Skinner, EDEN Web Manager

Resources and Portals for Sea Grant

October 7, 2:46 p.m.: South Carolina Sea Grant "would greatly appreciate if your program would send me links to those information resources which might be useful to our communities, businesses, and homeowners as they work to recover and restore their buildings, structures, and homes. And if you know of portals that already exist for such information, please share those as well." The request was forwarded to the delegated network by NY Sea Grant delegate Kathy Bunting-Howarth on October 8th. Kathy will receive and process responsive, forwarding non-duplicates to SC and to the EDEN web manager.

Initial response from Dave Baker, Retired MO-POC,

Two delegates had received the SG request independently and had offered SC the following and personal assistance:

Ken Hellevang (ND):

Virginia M. White (AL, through the communications head)

"Emergency Handbook – Alabama Cooperative Extension System” (also in Apple iBook Store)

And the following specific references to items in the handbook.

Colorado Rockies Flooding - September

Floodwaters are raging through Colorado and Nebraska, resulting from extraordinary rainfall on the front range of the Rocky Mountains.

EDEN has reached out to the states and will be offering assistance; eXtension is updating pages in the Floods section and Flood NEIL co-chair Ken Hellavang (ND) has been taped for public outreach in Colorado. A first Rockies Response Note details the situation.

NOTE on NOT self-deploying (Scott Cotton, September 16)

Animal and pet rescue related to the Colorado floods is being coordinated by the Colorado OEM (Office of Emergency Management), the Colorado State Veterinarian, and Colorado Pet Aid (a subdivision of the Colorado Vet Med Foundation). Anyone wanting to offer any type of resource or assistance should contact Debrah Schnackeberg at Colorado PetAid. Her email address is debrahschnackenberg@petaidcolorado.org.

It is crucial resources do not attempt to self-deploy with the infrastructure so damaged in the Front Range of Colorado.

EDEN support conference call - September 17 3 PM E/2 C/1 M to start the conversation with delegates involved in flood recovery.

When "noting" your response or assistance, select "Colorado Rockies Flooding 2013" as the Event Name in EDEN Response Notes. Please submit notes when your Extension system offers assistance to Extension in the impacted areas. EDEN and eXtension will be submitting notes to document our efforts.

FEMA Disaster Declaration for Colorado on September 14, 2013
Colorado Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides
Major Disaster Declaration number 4145

Flash Floods in May

Flash flooding affected New York May 29, Arkansas May 30, and Oklahoma and Missouri May 31. Flooding in Arkansas, Oklahoma and Missouri was associated with severe weather that also included tornadoes.

By May 10, eight major disaster declarations included flooding. Beginning in February, states affected by floods included Mississippi (DR-4101), Louisiana (DR-4102), Maine (DR-4108), Massachusetts (DR-4110), Illinois (DR-4116), North Dakota (DR-4118) and Iowa (DR-4119). Tribal lands of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (DR-4103) were also affected.

Scott Cotton (NE) filed this first Response Note on the afternoon of September 16. It went immediately to NIFA and was forwarded up to USDA as a report on the situation, needs and activities of Extension in the affected area.

We know there will be more, as the situation unfolds, damage assessed and recovery gets under way. We'd like to hear for delegates in the affected states as well as delegates in other states who are offering assistance.

EDEN and eXtension will be using Response Notes, too, to document our network effort in support of our colleagues rising to the challenge of this disaster.

First Field Report - September 16

Posted to the EDEN Website - unedited - with permission of the author.

Title:	38-2013-09-16T14_32_35.xml
RequestForAssist:	Yes
WhatAssist:	Share information.
Disaster State:	NE
Disaster Event Name:	Colorado Rockies Flooding 2013
SituationAwareness:	In the last five days (Sept. 9-16) the Front Range of Colorado and southeastern Wyoming have had weather patterns collide on the east side of the Rocky Mountains generating what the USGS is calling a "1,000 year flood event" with precipitation ranging from 7-40" of accumulation in areas of mountains and foothills. These areas include the Laramie River Drainage, the Poudre River drainage, the Big Thompson River drainage, the South Platte River drainage and the Arkansas River drainage. The area stretches for about 265 miles from Laramie, WY to Pueblo, CO. The flooding is striking the mountainous slope housing areas, the riparian areas and the densely inhabited Front Range population of 2-3 million people. 500 people are still missing and over 70 major highways have been washed out. Rain is subsiding but the river flood level has already traveled over 140 miles downstream. Much access is by helicopter only. State, local and federal resources are working hard to stabilize the safety issues and the rain is letting up, for now. People, animals, pets and other items are at risk.
ImpactUni:
UniResponseEfforts:	CSU Extension is communicating with officials to lend information, but seven or more County offices and the CSU campus are either directly or indirectly impacted at this time. Extension staff including those from adjacent states are working to prepare or channel resources to Colorado via official conduits. Animal care, mold recovery, water/ food safety and other issues will play a big part in the next three months.
UseofEDENResourcs:	We have used EDEN connections and contacts to identify emergency response contacts and protocols via the Colorado State Animal Response Team which was co-created by Colorado EDEN staff. We have offered access to our significant Flooding, AgroSecurity, and other resources. This will need to be re-enforced in the next weeks, but the Colorado PetAid Director has already acknowledged and recognized the resources and staff available via EDEN.
CommentsKudos:	EDEN SCAP delegates provided contact and communication resources for Colorado officials within 48 hours of the initial incident and will continue to assist with referrals and expertise. EDEN SCAP delegate communicated with "horse welfare" resources in three U.S. locations who were "staging to head for Colorado" and provided contact information with Colorado officials which would engage resources when needed rather than having self-deployed resources arrive and add to the confusion on the Colorado landscape.
ResponseNoteFeedback:	Well enough.
DisasterInstitution:	University of Nebraska
DisasterTopic:	Floods and Flooding
Checked Out To:
Last Modified 9/16/2013 2:32 PM by Scott Cotton

The main flooding event of 2012 is associated with Hurricane Sandy, which went ashore at New Jersey. It has been called New Jersey's Katrina (Louisiana, Mississippi; 2005), based on the storm surge impacts.

There was flooding in spring 2012 that generated no requests for assistance. Hurricane Isaac created flood problems primarily in Louisiana, and is covered primarily here in the EDEN Hurricanes topic area.

See these 2012 EDEN pages: Superstorm Sandy or Hurricane Sandy.

Extension educators and agents: If you were in the path let us know how your are. If you are engaged in flood preparedness, flood damage reduction and/or flood recovery efforts,
please SEND US A NOTE either by email
or using our online form.

Use "Flooding 2012" as the event name for floods not attributed to hurricanes. For hurricane-related flooding, use the event name "Hurricanes 2012"

EDEN Helps Now

EDEN began its coverage of the 2012 flood season in mid March with an intense rain in south central Louisiana. We contined with the Minnesota / Wisconsin floods of June. See the named events in this season (Sandy) for efforts related to this superstorm.

Early season activities

Flood Preparation Webinar - The 1.5-hour webinar was hosted by Dr. Ken Hellevang, NDSU Extension Agriculture Engineer, and was offered twice.

Ready Business Train-the-Trainer Webinars we offered March 2, 4 and 11. These webinars introduced EDEN's Ready Business resources to Extension educators and others to help them lead the program in their communities.

EDEN provided general messages early in the season. See the Floods and Flooding page.

Superstorm Sandy came in as a Cat 1 hurricane and caused severe coastal and inland flooding. Additional flooding is anticipated from snow melt in in areas on the backside of the storm that received snow in feet - not inch - amounts. Immediate issues to be addressed relative to the flooding include:

Safe re-entry into flooded homes and other buildings
Human Health Issues
Clean-up and Sanitation
Food Safety from flooded products or power outages
Salvaging furniture, clothes, bedding and, important papers

As clean-up proceeds issues will arise with respect to rebuilding and mold growth.

Resources to address these issues are posted to one of the following EDEN pages:

Current Requests page
Flood Resources Collected page (collected in prior events)
University and Federal Tools
eXtension page for flood Fact sheets and FAQs

Also see the specific flood recovery issues pages:

Agriculture Issues in flood recovery

Resources related to other aspects of Hurricane Sandy may be found in the

EDEN Hurricane Sandy pages.

If you don't find what you need on these pages, please e-mail EDEN Web Manager - Pat Skinner with a specific request

EDEN Response Notes is theEDEN system for finding out if our Extension members need any type of assistance with disaster response and recovery, and learning about their response and recoveyr activities.

Read About Response Notes to learn why and how we use EDEN Response Notes.
Enter your Response Note using our online form (requires login).

Spring Melt, mid-summer heavy rains and dam releases have created misery through much of the Mississippi River watershed and the northeastern states. The soils in these areas remain saturated and unable to accommodate rains dropped across the area by Hurricane Irene on August 28. This Spring Melt page provides immediate access to EDEN's flood resources and the experiences and activities of states that have been fighting recent floods. A similar page will be set up for the Irene floods.

Extension educators and agents: If you were in the path let us know how your are. If you are engaged in flood preparedness, flood damage reduction and/or flood recovery efforts,
please SEND US A NOTE either by email
or using our online form.

Use "Hurricane Irene 2011" as the event name for floods attributed to this storm.

Dam Release on the Rising Missouri River

Flooding from this event is expected to continue in some places into October. We are no longer tracking the event, but continue to receive Response Notes from those dealing with the water, using the "2011 Spring Melt" event name.

Visit the Corps Omaha District 2011 Flood Information Page for updates.

The Corps Kansas City District has posted inundation maps viewable in Google Earth, from Rulo, NE to St. Louis, MO. This Corps Kansas City District 2011 Flood Information Page provides a link to the Inundation Maps page.

The alert: Initial press release from Corps of Engineers Omaha District. Initial paragraphs read:

May 26, 2011

Omaha, Neb. – Releases from the Missouri River reservoirs will reach historic levels in the coming weeks, the result of above-normal snow in the mountains and extraordinary rain over the last several weeks. Significant flooding in cities, towns and agricultural land is expected in North and South Dakota with many areas from Sioux City, Iowa, to the Mississippi rising above flood stage.

Flows from five of the six dams are expected to reach a record 110,000 cubic feet per second (cfs). The previous high releases were 70,000 cfs in the fall of 1997. “Public safety is our number one concern,” said Brig. Gen. John McMahon, commander of the Northwestern Division of the Army Corps of Engineers. “We are working closely with state and local emergency management teams to identify potential flood areas, provide residents with the most current information and help protect vital public infrastructure.

“People along the river are encouraged to make evacuation plans to protect their possessions and property. Maps for potential flood areas will be available at www.nwo.usace.army.mil and from local emergency management offices,” he added.

Flooded areas are expected to be inundated for several months.

A press release in Holt County, MO, gave the following advice: Local residents and visitors staying within the flood plain are encouraged have an Action Plan:

Monitor the river levels, watches and warnings

Prepare and plan

know where you are going if you are required to evacuate – tell someone

have a phone number exchange with family, friends and neighbors

have your medicines in an easy to reach container -take it with you if you are required to evacuate

take your pets out with you, if required to evacuate

take important documents – birth certificates, marriage licenses, social security cards, etc. – with you if you are required to evacuate

Stay on top of current river stages and forecasts at http://water.weather.gov/ahps/ .

Featured Resources

For the Missouri River "June" event, new resources are being offered in response to special requests from delegates. See the "Resources Collected" page (left nav bar).

For areas recovering and rebuilding from the spring tornados and first wave of destruction along the Missouri, Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, some states are using these:

Storm Recovery Guide: A 32-page booklet with the combined content of about 30 fact sheets (Louisiana). Missouri also picked up Navigating the Post-Disaster Mortgage Issues (PDF) and Keeping Food and Water Safe Before, During and After a Disaster.
Exercising in the Heat: Includes tips for avoiding heat illness (Missouri)
Recovery after Disaster: Family Financial Toolkit: discusses strategies and provides tools that can help you move along the road towards financial recovery. (Minnesota)
Disaster Recovery Resource Fairs: A Disaster Recovery Resource Fair is a local, one-stop shop for disaster victims to access multiple assistance programs at one location. Holding Disaster Recovery Resource Fairs in the affected community can help reduce many barriers people may encounter as they attempt to access disaster assistance programs and services. (Minnesota)
Community Organizations Active in Disaster (COAD) Guidance Manual This document (PDF) was written to help all community organizations and individuals understand how collaborative efforts can prepare communities for disaster. The main goals of these collaborations are to help communities avoid some disasters and recover from other unavoidable disasters. (Indiana adapted from/with Missouri).
Rebuilding Resources: an extensive web site developed for recovery from mass devastation (Katrina and Rita in south Louisiana). From getting started (recovery, getting your finances in order, thinking about what you want to do), to building codes and permits, and hazard-resistance, energy efficiency and indoor air quality in designing, rebuilding and repairing homes. Connects with the Louisiana House Resource Center and Family Resource Management, Food and Nutrition, engineering, pest control and lawn and landscape programs.

EDEN has two preparedness courses that could be useful in this pre-melt period:

Family Preparedness: An instructor-lead program Extension educators and others can use to teach families and individuals how to make family disaster kits, develop a family disaster plan, and be informed about and prepared for various disasters.

Ready Business: Developing a Business Continuity and Disaster Preparedness Plan for Your Business. Designed for land-grant university specialists, Cooperative Extension Service educators/agents, business leaders and others to teach small- and medium-sized business owners and managers how to prepare for disasters

For farm and agribusiness prepardness, check out the Purdue publication:

Plan Today for Tomorrow's Flood: A Flood Response Plan for Agricultural Retailers provides information about planning for a flood. http://www.btny.purdue.edu/Pubs/PPP/PPP-87.pdf

An online version of the magnet that accompanies this publication is available at http://www.btny.purdue.edu/Pubs/PPP/PPP-88.pdf

First Steps to Flood Recovery (Purdue Extension)

Talking About Disaster: Guide for Standard Messages - Floods/Flash Floods (Red Cross)

Hearing Impaired: Flood Cleanup Information - The modules are presented via video in international sign language and cover - from the Texas Department of Public Safety.

Dangers after a Flood
Tips about Food after a Flood
Wounds and Floodwater
General Flood Cleanup

Mold - EDEN Topic Page - Provides information and resources on the prevention, cleanup, and health effects of mold.

For a detailed look at reducing damage to homes exposed to shallow flooding (less than 3 feet), take a look at this collection provided by the LSU AgCenter:

Preventing Flood Damage: Information includes performance-level fact sheets and over and over 80 minutes of videos on permanent and temporary measures that can prevent or reduce damage from rising water. Note that the information is developed for Louisiana climate, soil conditions and typical flood characteristics, and thus may not be transferable directly to other states. However the basic principles involved would apply

EDEN Helps now!

EDEN began it's coverage of the 2011 flood season in mid February as concern developed over the record amounts of snow that was dropping across the country's mid-section and up toward central Canada and New England. As the snows began to melt, and spring rains were heavy, flooding was widespread - in rivers flowing north - into Canada - and south, winding up eventually in the Mississippi River.

As the second wave is hitting in May and June on the Missouri River, EDEN has been forwarding requests for assistance from individual states and collecting responses. See "Resources Collected" (left nav bar) for these results. A similar page was created for the spring tornadoes.

Early season activities

Flood Preparation Webinar - The 1.5-hour webinar was hosted by Dr. Ken Hellevang, NDSU Extension Agriculture Engineer, and was offered twice.

EDEN provided the following general messages early in the season:

Help your communities prepare

Know YOUR risk - talk to your local emergency manager
Prepare yourself and your Extension office for floodling
Help your local communities prepare to protect and recover
Help consumer clients be informed, know their risk and prepare and protect themselves

Principal messages for clientelle:

Buy flood insurance - www.floodsmart.gov (flood insurance basics page)
Turn around. Don't Drown http://www.nws.noaa.gov/os/water/tadd/
Make a disaster supply kit - one for staying, one for going
Listen for local alerts; evacuate if advised to do so by local officials
Protect your property from rising water, if possible.

Important Flood Insurance Facts

Flooding is not covered by homeowners insurance, a separate policy is required
There is a 30-day waiting period between purchase and coverage becoming effective (with a few exceptions)
Flood insurance covers damage caused by rising water - building and contents coverage is provided in two separate policies, except when written as Preferred Risk. Coverage purchased as a requirement for getting a mortgage typically covers on the building, not the contents.
Flood insurance provides up to $1,000 to protect an insured building and $1,000 to protect insured contents. Receipts are required, flood must be reasonably expected; the policy deductible is not applied. (See coverage C on the Dwelling form)
Flood insurance pays up to $30,000 toward the cost of elevating a home if it was substantially damaged by the flood and is being required to elevate before being restored (see Coverage D on the Dwelling form).

Gauges, Forecasting and Outlooks

A general outlook for significant flooding can be viewed at NWS National Significant River Flood Outlook. The Flood Outlook is not intended to depict all areas of minor flooding or small-scale events such as localized flooding and/or flash flooding.

The National Snow Analysis offers many opportunities to view snow - its depth, water-equivalent, temperature and other parameters that are used by flood forecasters to predict spring flooding. One could spend many hours studying the overlay of Rivers and Streams on the Snow Depth. Choose the Interactive Maps on the National Snow Analysis page.

Requests for Assistance

Illinois has made no requests for assistance from the network or our USDA partner.

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Response Notes Digest

SituationAwareness:	April 26 - 27: National Weather Service estimates that 6 to 14 inches of rain has fallen over parts of the Ohio River watershed in the past week. Much of the southern half of Illinois has seen rain in the 6-inches and above amounts causing widespread flooding of streams and rivers along with much standing water in fields and rural roadways being impassable at times. The major threat to dwellings and businesses remains along the Ohio River where record-setting flooding, now characterized by the NWS as Major to Catastrophic is occurring. Portions of Cairo, Illinois have been evacuated. April 28: Flood crest now anticipated at over 60-feet in Cairo, an all time high, but below the flood wall. About 100 people in the Cairo area have been evacuated. Gates on dams on two upstream reservoirs have been closed which will cause flooding of recreational facilities including boat ramps, marinas, campgrounds, etc and could cause flooding of agricultural lands far removed from the river. May 3: Flooding continues along the Wabash, Ohio, Mississippi and Illinois Rivers in Illinois along with their tributaries. The Ohio river at Cairo, Illinois has passed previous records and is forecast to continue to rise through Wednesday. There has been additional rain over last 48 hours in the flooded area. Because of the historic levels, some areas which are not considered flood prone have been affected. Some schools in southern Illinois are closed, others have reduced bus service. Some towns have become isolated. Postal service functions have been moved to higher ground in Pope County. May 16: Flood levels continue to drop slowly in southern Illinois. Event is slowly moving to clean up and recovery stage. Agricultural flooding remains extensive. May 27: Continued flooding along the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. Flood crest now anticipated at over 60-feet in Cairo, an all time high, but below the flood wall. About 100 people in the Cairo area have been evacuated. Gates on dams on two upstream reservoirs have been closed which will cause flooding of recreational facilities including boat ramps, marinas, campgrounds, etc and could cause flooding of agricultural lands far removed from the river.
ImpactUni:	Other than minor seepage there is no effect in Extension offices at this point. At least one U of I Extension employee has evacuated their home in the Cairo area. Extension offices remain open and fully functioning at this time. May 3: The Shawneetown office of University of Illinois Extension may become cut off from access. May 27: One Extension employee has been forced to evacuate her residence.
UniResponseEfforts:	We've been in communication with all field offices offering copies of "First Steps to Flood recovery." We are making plans to deploy other information as needed. As the event unfolds, we may deploy a loan pool of moisture meters (purchased with Special Needs funds followning 2008 floodin) in the recovery phase if necessary.
UseofEDENResourcs:	Distributed 750 copies of "First Steps to Flood recovery." purchased with USDA Special Needs funding following 2008 flooding. Purdue publication "Plan Today for Tomorrow's Flood: A Flood Response Plan for Agricultural Retailers" is being made available. May 3: Over 1000 First Steps pubs have been distributed. Extension staff have also been communicating food safety and other information through local media. May 16: More than 2,500 copies of First Steps to Flood Recovery have been sent to affected offices. Many offices are working very closely with local EMA officials. Have also been using EDEN site and eXtension for specific questions which are being forwarded to me.
ResponseNoteFeedback:	Very well.
DisasterInstitution:	University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign [Rick Atterberry]

EDEN delegates can read individual Response Notes on the Intranet.

Requests for Assistance

South Dakota has made no requests for assistance from the network or our USDA partner.

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Response Notes Digest

SituationAwareness:	This note is entered June 7, compiling information from e-mails sent February 9-11. February 9: Warmer temperatures are on the way. Snow melt will be producing flooding. No details are available. SD is redoing it's web site in CMS and is recreacting a the disaster pages. February 10: FEMA holding mtgs here promoting flood insurance. Told us flood estimates coming - know from late summer/fall precip and snow will have river flooding here - degree unknown and will depend on how rapid melt - next week for us is deal above 32 during day and below a( night. Rapid sustained warm up will have severe flooding - here especially along James River. Our EM and FEMA want us to focus on individual and family preparedness to both shelter in place and evacuate. We have issues with roads washed out flood still not fixed. February 11: I have attached info from our state climatologist who is putting the picture together for us relative to the potential for flooding. There is nothing yet on floodsmart.gov – indicates maps are coming. You can see Dr. Todey is looking at the NWS hydrological maps and snow pack plus our long range temps. From the attachment: Hydrologic outlooks from the NWS Sioux Falls, Aberdeen, and Rapid City ("outlook" urls provided have expired) Missouri River Forecast Center http://www.crh.noaa.gov/mbrfc/ Current snow map conditions: http://nohrsc.noaa.gov/interactive/html/map.html
UniResponseEfforts:	Kim has drafted new pages for flood "preparedness and planning" and "response and recovery"
UseofEDENResourcs:	New pages provide many direct links to content on eXtension and several to EDEN topic pages. Hoping to add eXtension widget to pages – need permission or maybe it is blessing. REALLY!!!
DisasterInstitution:	South Dakota State University [from Kim Cassel's emails]

Requests for Assistance

Indiana has made no requests for assistance from the network or our USDA partner.

Response Notes Digest

SituationAwareness:	May 3: Flooding continues in Indiana, but assessments have not been completed for personal property loss. All of Indiana planting is affected and thousands of homes have suffered from flooding and/or wind damage. May 19: Planting has been severely delayed, especially in the southern third of the state. About a dozen counties have experienced severe flooding. The seven most affected counties are estimated to have almost 300 homes with more than basement flooding. There are no figures on how many homes had basement flooding. Emergency managers, American Red Cross and Salvation Army are still doing assessments, with about 107 home still inaccessible.
ImpactUni:	No personnel were physically threatened. Crop planting at research farms is delayed.
UniResponseEfforts:	The Purdue Extension maintains Crop Management Information for Flood-Damaged Crops at Crop Flood Information http://www.agry.purdue.edu/ext/corn/cafe/flood/index.html Personal Flood Recovery http://www.ag.purdue.edu/extension/eden/Pages/flood-home.aspx In addition several thousand hardcopies of First Steps to Flood Recovery were distributed through county offices and the American Red Cross, often at the request of ARC. Purdue Extension facilitated two Community Organizations Active in Disaster meeting which brought together flood response personnel is counties across the state. In addition, Purdue Extension provides updates to all COAD personnel. May 19: The Purdue Extension Mold Team, part of the Healthy Homes program, is responding to a few calls from Indiana residents who have mold issues from the floods. Purdue Extension provides extensive educational materials in print and video to help homeowners with flooding. As President of the Indiana Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, Steve Cain met in a conference call with the Governor's Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives and the Indiana Department of Homeland Security to discuss the damage and recovery issues. We are still waiting for assessments to be completed, so the conference calls on recovery will be weekly until the issue is resolved. We don't know whether Indiana will receive a federal declaration, but we are working with FEMA and the state to inject donations into the National Donations Management Network for Indiana. Meanwhile, Cain has worked with Indiana Voluntary Organizations to work with local Community Organizations Active in Disaster. With the size and scope of disaster elsewhere in the country, local, Indiana COADs are gearing up for recovery on the assumption that they will not receive outside assistance. Purdue Extension's EDEN site provides resources on all issues about disasters including floods. The site recieves more than 100,000 visitors per year. On ag issues, Cain and the Executive Director of the Farm Services Agency, Julia Wickard, also met by conference call and agreed to share resources. Purdue's Chat 'n Chew Cafe provides "Crop Management INformation for Flood Damaged Field Crops." http://www.agry.purdue.edu/ext/corn/cafe/flood/index.html
UseofEDENResourcs:	Yes to all. First, long-term use of EDEN is the major reason Purdue Extension resources and efforts exist. Simply, without EDEN, we wouldn't be reaching communities and thousands of individuals with recovery information. Getting to catalogued resources and other state, EDEN pages has been most useful. Many of the mold remediation materials and land reclamation information came from using the EDEN network.
DisasterInstitution:	Purdue University [Steve Cain]

June 8: Missouri Extension asked us to share these two web sites for with EDEN and other wishing to follow the Missouri River/dam release flooding on the western border.

Requests for Assistance

Delegates in Iowa and Missouri asked for help finding resources on preparing a home for long term flooding besides removing contents, such as, open or close doors, how to store items in attics, safety for propane tanks, etc. An email was sent to delegates June 3; responses are shown on the 2011: Spring Melt "Resources Collected" page.

Missouri has made no other for assistance from the network or our USDA-NIFA partner.

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Response Notes Digest

SituationAwareness:	May 13: Missouri has experienced flooding along both the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers. The most serious is occurring along the Mississippi River below St. Genevieve.We have a lot of water in our “protected” bottoms. Some from seep water, some from the 20+ inches of rain we got in that 10 day period. We have more water in the bottoms than I have seen without having a levee break. Farther south it is much the same and more. The corps of engineers tried to hold back water in every puddle that they controlled. Even to the point on one lake (Wappapello) they built a temporary levee on the emergency spillway that backed the water up 2 foot higher than pool max. it back water into Greenville and completely cutoff the town. Many structures got water into them. Parts of Hwy 67 went under water. When the levee broke it damaged several letter highways and nearly took out the last open east/west hwy in the Bootheel, Hwy 60. We had some mud slides on some highway cuts from the rains. Clear Water Dam came close to failing, but survived. Other locks and dams were managed the same and it looks like they survived too. But they were all close to failure and the Corps admitted that they had to start making major (historic) releases in the entire Mississippi watershed. This is referring to the Missouri, Ohio, and Tennessee river systems, too, and the smaller rivers as well. May 19: A significant portion of the East Prairie school district's taxable land is in the fertile floodway -- with millions of dollars of assessed value now under water. The value of this farmland is estimated at $300 million by the Missouri Department of Agriculture. Net cash income from farming in Mississippi County was $39 million in the last agricultural census in 2007. The Center for Economic & Business Research at Southeast Missouri State University's estimates labor income in Mississippi County could decline by about $12 million, roughly 9 percent of the county's total labor income. Total revenue/sales in the county could decline by $93.45 million, or 14.4 percent, according to numbers worked up by Bruce Domazlicky, the center's director. It is estimated that there is a loss of 500 jobs. As one city official express their losses, “"Agriculture is our factory, and right now it's 10 foot under water."
ImpactUni:	Staff living in Cape Girardeau, Scott, Butler, Stoddard, Carter, Ripley, Wayne, Mississippi, New Madrid, Pemiscot, and some in Perry Counties have been impacted by major flooding. All personnel are accounted for and safe. Some are unable to leave their homes due to road closings and high water. Actual damage to homes and property is still being assessed. Two Extension staff members lost their homes and farms. Two Extension offices were in danger of flooding and were closed for a period of time due to high water.
UniResponseEfforts:	May 13: All Extension offices are responding to the needs of flood victims in the affected counties. Extension faculty are fully engaged in helping thier communities respond. News releases, radio and TV spots and disaster centers are being provided with information about safety and clean-up. Extension Faculty in other parts of the state are on stand-by to provide additional assistance when needed. David Baker, Assistant Dean of Agriculture Extension, at the University of MO., serves on the USDA State Emergency Board. The board has met two times since the flooding began. The board worked with local USDA County Emergency Boards in the affected counties to develop farmer input sessions. The Governor had the director of MO Dept of Ag, Dr. John Hagler, conduct 4 fact finder meetings to find out the concerns of the Bootheel ag community, in Mississippi, New Madrid, Pemiscot and Butler Counties. He also had all state agencies do some flood recovery meetings (fair like format), Exxtension participated. Since we had no money, we had to hard sell the information that we had for folks. The Red Cross loves our “Resources for Your Flooded Home”. They ordered many copies and reproduced more. We also had the water well, rodent and snake publications, along with the Better Living handbook produced in 2009. The ag meetings had about 300 total attendance at the 4 sites. The flood recovery meetings had over 600 total attendance at 5 locations. USDA partners participated at all the meetings. There was a contractor fraud prevention workshops last week. Here are a few points of importance. 1)There were 6 sessions with approximately 100 people in total attendance from the affected communities. 2)A follow-up class will be conducted next week at the St. Louis County Library-Bridgeton location on the components that go into putting a new roof on (so that those affected know the kind of work (materials, labor, etc.) to expect when the contractor is at their home). 3)KFVS, KTVI (Fox2Now), KMOX, and the Suburban Journal picked up stories in the event. 4)An Extension Specialist served as a panelist during the session held Monday – Wednesday. Thursday she was the facilitator and main presenter. 5)Extension also had a resource table at each event with information on chainsaw safety, storm damage trees, tips for hiring a contractor, assessing your roof for damage, repairing your roof after a tornado, salvaging food after a tornado, dealing with stress after a disaster, area disaster resource numbers, flood resources (if needed). 6)There were at least 12 organizations that partnered to host the workshops. May 19: Extension faculty identified resource topics that will be needed in the upcoming weeks and months. Networking with state agencies and local publics to assist wth followup on local needs is a high priority. It is also important to work with populations indirectly impacted by flood--there was significant water damage from storms, areas that were under water because high river stage would not allow for drainage, and hill ground suffered erosion and stayed wet because of the same events.
UseofEDENResourcs:	Through EDEN we have been able to identify specific resources that will be of use. Videos from North Dakota State will be of use when flood waters begin to go down and restoration can begin on flooded wells. A group of EDEN delegates representing 9 states have come together to evaluate current flood recovery resources and further develop those resources for future use.
Comments/Kudos:	The research-based information provided by Extension has proven time and again to be of special value to flood recovery victims. We do not have funds to distribute to people or businesses; but, the one-on-one conversations we can enter into give individuals an opportunity to tell their story. By being able to tell thier story, people begin to heal and recover. The information we share can help them recover in a safe and effective manner. After the height of the disaster passes and all of the other agencies leave, the local Extension specialists are still there to help people rebuild thier lives and their communities.
DisasterInstitution:	University of Missouri [Beverly Maltsberger]

EDEN delegates can read individual Response Notes on the Intranet.

Requests for Assistance

Louisiana has made no requests for assistance from the network or our USDA partner.

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Response Notes Digest

SituationAwareness:	May 12: Louisiana is under a state of emergency, federally declared. Record flooding of the Mississippi will crest in Louisiana this month, severely testing the extensive mainline levee system. The Corps has several control structures along the river that it can use to manipulate river levels. Bonnet Carre spillway, just above New Orleans has been opened; Morganza, just above Baton Rouge is likely to open this weekend for the first time in 40 years. Thousands of individual properties and agricultural assets will be impacted. Will provide numeric estimates in the next report.
ImpactUni:	Preparation for potential flooding is interrupting business. Some personnel will be affected, though the most significant flooding has not occured yet.
UniResponseEfforts:	The LSU AgCenter began focusing its program and administrative efforts on this event on April 29, with the distribution of resource-list to our northeast Louisiana parishes. Contact was made with the state EOC and relation to ESF-11 Coordinator re-affirmed. A flood task force of administration and communicaiton and program specialist is guiding internal and external assessment and preparedness efforts. A special webpage was created for the 2011 Spring Flood (www.LSUAgCenter.com/floods ). A most popular resource has been the interactive mapping site built during Katrina/Rita recovery, which shows users the most floodprone areas and allows them to find their ground elevation. Considerable effort has gone into making sure users of this standing system understand what it is, what it is NOT, and how to use it. www.LSUAgCenter.com/floodmaps . Utlization has stretched capacity and admin has just authorized significant memory upgrade. The GIS tools that support this online system have been used offline to help the state prepare estimates of crop damage that would occur if the Morganza spillway is opened. We have begun reorganizing and upgrading our preparedness resources and website to highlight information that is useful and pertinent in the current situation. Links to pertinent LSU AgCenter disaster publications were forwarded to field faculty.
UseofEDENResourcs:	We have interacted with EDEN at the executive level. In preparation for hurricane season, Becky White had already forwarded information regarding the Family Preparedness Course to field faculty. We are taking the liberty of "borrowing" some photos from the Family Preparedness course ppts for use on our web site. We are relying on the EDEN network as a resource for relevant information and links to forward to field faculty.
DisasterInstitution:	Louisiana State University [Pat Skinner]

EDEN delegates can read individual Response Notes on the Intranet.

Resource Requests

Arkansas has made no requests for assistance from the network or our USDA partner.

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Response Notes Digest

SituationAwareness:	Added June 3 from a Response Note submitted May 16 During April 2011, a series of severe thunderstorms generated damaging straight-line winds, tornadoes and flooding across Arkansas. The heavy rains associated with these storms caused flash flooding and eventual flooding of the Black and White Rivers in the Arkansas Delta and contributed to flooding along the Mississippi River. Late in the night of April 14 to early April 15, 10 tornadoes (EF1-EF2) were confirmed in central Arkansas in the Little Rock warning areas. Seven people were killed. On April 25, another tornado outbreak slammed the southwest and central portions of the state. Fifteen tornadoes (EF1-EF3) were confirmed. One of the stronger of these tornadoes, an EF2, tore through three counties (Pulaski, Faulkner and White) and during its 51-mile trek, hit the town of Vilonia in Faulkner County, killing 4 and causing major structural damage. Between April 23-27, the state experienced major flooding and flash flooding. At least 5 flash flood fatalities were reported in northwestern Arkansas. As the ground became saturated, run off created moderate to major flooding along the Buffalo, Black, Spring, Eleven Point, White, Arkansas and Ouachita Rivers. Seven people died in flash floods. The Mississippi Delta counties are continuing to flood. As of May 12, Benton, Clay, Faulkner, Garland, Pulaski, Randolph, Lincoln, Saline, Crittenden, Madison, Montgomery, Phillips, Washington, Boone, Jefferson, and White counties have been declared disaster areas. At this time, roughly 1,800 homes have been reported damaged. However, flooding is ongoing, and estimates are preliminary. Arkansas Farm Bureau Federation on May 10 offered a preliminary estimate that 1 million acres were flooded and the impact to crops would be upward of $500 million in Arkansas.
ImpactUni:	As of May 11, no University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture personnel reported any injuries related to the flooding. The home of one support staff member in Prairie County is under water. Damage was reported the following county extension offices: • Madison County, minor damage due to flooding, potential mold issue. • Sharp County, small leak in office • Van Buren County, water supply disrupted by storms/power outages, now rectified. The following preparedness actions have been taken: • Northeast Extension and Research Center is ready to sandbag if Mississippi River overtops levee. • Rohwer Research Station is ready to evacuate if Mississippi River levee breached.
UniResponseEfforts:	Communications – The media, both the general press and agriculture industry outlets, were key targets in an effort to tell the agriculture portion of the flooding story to the public. The CES Communications department began sending out disaster-related news stories on April 15, the morning after the first wave of dangerous weather swept through Arkansas. • April 15 –The first story issued about farmers assessing damage following tornadoes, hail and high winds. • April 22 – Story issued about dangers related to storm damaged trees. • April 27 – News story issued about efforts by Faulkner County faculty and 4-H’ers helping in cleanup following deadly tornado at Vilonia Flooding specific stories began April 25, the Monday after a weekend of torrential rains. • April 25 –The first stories were “situational,” giving the media and the public its first look at the damage being caused and potential effects on agriculture. • April 28 – The first of the “how-to” stories was issued, advising the public of key disaster recovery information available at county extension offices. Also issued was an overview of the flooding situation statewide, and a story on preventing blackleg, “hardware disease” in cattle. • April 29 – News story issued on stream bank erosion and corrective/preventative measures. • May 2 – News story on evacuation orders in two counties. • May 3 – News story on what farmers need to examine when water recedes; story on safe food following a disaster. • May 5 – News story on what corn growers need to examine when water recedes; news story on water seeding rice; news story on flooding overview. May 6 – News story on new flood damage to grain bins, etc., preparations for crest of Mississippi River; news story on flooding-soy planting dates; news story on evaluating flooded cotton for replanting; news story on flood erosion on young sorghum/corn stands. • May 9 – News story about anxiety levels rising with Mississippi River levels. • May 10 – News story about Arkansas Procurement Assistance Center and how it can help Arkansas businesses compete for government disaster cleanup projects. • May 11 – News story on per-acre costs for planting corn, rice; news story advising flooded farmers to check their forward contracts and insurance policies. • May 12 – interviews with family life specialist were offered to media to describe coping actions for disaster victims. Disaster Education – The majority of the University of Arkansas’ efforts have been educational and revolved around getting specially targeted educational materials into the hands of our faculty and staff in the field who are then getting materials out to the public. CES Community and Economic Development, along with Communications, Family and Consumer Sciences, Animal Science, Biological and Agricultural Engineering, and Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences faculty and staff have worked together to deliver timely and pertinent information to county offices. Because disaster education faculty did not want to overwhelm county level faculty with information, all information sent was targeted to a) clientele served (Ag, 4-H, FCS, etc), b) impacts of event at county level, and c) phase of disaster cycle (awareness, preparedness, response, assessment and recovery). State office began by making National Weather Service watches, warnings and radar available to employees and clientele on the home page. We also began sending out the Severe Weather Outlooks from the National Weather Service to all county offices. Educational materials included fact sheets and briefs (in PDF) on: • preparing for tornadoes and floods • protecting homes, farms and equipment • human health and safety issues (with emphasis on water and septic systems) • feeding livestock • keeping food safe during an emergency • financial losses and insurance issues following disasters • salvaging home appliances • mold • how youth can help with recovery efforts • managing volunteers in recovery efforts Most of this information came from our online University of Arkansas Disaster Response Handbook. However, we found out the most effective method for helping our county faculty and staff to use these materials was to send the files in PDF so that they had “grab and go” materials at hand. We also sent out regular updates on disaster declarations, information on Federal sources of disaster aid and provided contact information for key agency liaisons in the state. Allied Agency Work – The Arkansas Procurement Assistance Center (APAC) in Community and Economic Development, is helping Arkansas businesses obtain government contracts to provide cleanup, construction and repair services in the wake of flooding and other storm damage. County faculty and staff disseminated information sent by the state office to their clientele and community members. Many of our county staff worked closely with the county judges (the county executive), USDA (primarily RD and FSA) and the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management to monitor local conditions and assess damages.
UseofEDENResourcs:	We used many of the EDEN and eXtension resources. Topic/issue pages were extremely helpful as were resources shared through the network. Some of our county faculty and staff reported that they found eXtension very helpful. However, most of our county faculty and staff were more comfortable with state office faculty using the EDEN and eXtension resources to tailor information for their needs and in a format they could easily distribute.
CommentsKudos:	• County faculty and staff using and disseminating educational materials • Organizations from within Arkansas and in other states have found our materials on disaster response and are linking to our web page • Since January, newspapers from across the state have picked up on our awareness and preparedness materials and generated roughly 25 news articles from these materials • Agriculture reporter at state’s largest daily sends note saying “beaten by extension again” referring to disaster coverage • University of Arkansas CES is receiving calls about flooding and its impacts from state, national and international news agencies, including The Associated Press, Reuters-Chicago, Deustche Presse Agentur in Washington. • Arkansas Radio Network and Reuters both interviewed CES FCS faculty on coping, emotionally with disaster.
DisasterInstitution:	University of Arkansas [Deborah Tootle]

Requests for Assistance

Kentucky has made no requests for assistance from the network or our USDA partner.

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Response Notes Digest

SituationAwareness:	Entered June 3 from a Response Note received May 16. Beginning the week of April 18 high winds, tornadoes, hail and heavy rains moved into Kentucky. The heavy rains continued as one weather system after another moved through the state. Some areas of the state received a total of over 20 inches of rain before finally clearing. The historic rain amounts caused lakes and rivers to crest at unprecedented levels and historic flooding. On April 25 Governor Beshear declared a state of emergency and requested federal assistance. On May 4 the President approved a Major Disaster Declaration for mitigation and public assistance. (http://kyem.ky.gov/aprilsevereweather.htm) Affected areas include: Anderson County, Bath County, Boone County, Boyd County, Bracken County, Campbell County, Carroll County, Carter County, Clay County, Estill County, Fleming County, Franklin County, Gallatin County, Grant County, Green County, Greenup County, Harlan County, Henry County, Kenton County, Lawrence County, Lee County, Lewis County, Mason County, Mercer County, Morgan County, Nicholas County, Oldham County, Owen County, Owsley County, Pendleton County, Robertson County, Spencer County, Trimble County, and Washington County. (http://www.fema.gov/news/eventcounties.fema?id=14332) Only 13 percent of the state’s corn was in the ground as of April 17. That is well below the 31 percent that was planted by this time in 2010 and lower than the five-year average of 22 percent. Corn planted in the first part of May has an average yield decrease of 1 bushel per acre per day, and corn planted in the latter part of May has an average yield decrease of 2 bushels per acre per day. In a normal year, Kentucky’s corn crop is in the ground by May 15 to maintain average yield potential. (http://www.kyagr.com/pr/kanonline/April292011/Mudding-in-corn-could-cause-sidewall-compaction.htm)
ImpactUni:	n/a
UniResponseEfforts:	County extension offices have reported assisting their communities through providing facilities for local responders to meet, feeding volunteers assisting in the recovery efforts, and providing educational materials and information to clientele inquiring about flood issues (i.e., what to do about flooded appliances, mold, etc.).
UseofEDENResourcs:	EDEN network providing invaluable communication between states for assistance and information through the listserv. In addition, the floods and flooding page has provided important tools to provide to our Extension educators to assist with the information needed by their clientele. Also, personal contact with EDEN delegates from other states (i.e., Steve Cain) has proven to be invaluable assistance during this time of extreme devastation (see Kudos section below).
CommentsKudos:	Steve Cain from Purdue University donated EDEN flood publications (driving them down personally himself) and delivered them to the Daviess County Extension Office for distribution to affected counties' clientele.
DisasterInstitution:	University of Kentucky [Andrea Husband]

Requests for Assistance

Tennessee has made no requests for assistance from the network or our USDA partner for this disaster.

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Response Notes Digest

SituationAwareness:	Entered June 3 from a Response Note received May 16. The Mississippi River reached record or near-record crests in West Tennessee during the week of May 9, and is expected to remain above flood stage possibly until late May or early June. These crests approached or exceeded the historic 1937 flood levels and threatened to overtop or damage mainline levees along the Mississippi River and tributaries. As the floods approached the levee levels, thousands of residents were advised to evacuate. River traffic was halted for brief period due to the wakes of barges splashing over the levees. Emergency actions were underway to fortify and raise the levees in Lake County until there was reason to believe catastrophic flooding was averted by the Corps of Engineers intentionally breaching a levee upstream of Tennessee that lowered the river crest a small amount. Had the levees along Madrid Bend failed, virtually all of Lake County would have been inundated. Other towns further down the Mississippi River experienced flooding due to tributaries being backed up by the rising Mississippi River and locally more than 8 inches of rainfall. Many major roads, including Interstate 40 west of Memphis, and rail lines were closed, disrupting travel and commerce. Agricultural impacts will be significant in flooded areas. Wheat and other grain crops will not be harvested. Corn that was already planted is lost, and fertilizers and other inputs will also be lost. Other crops will not be planted on time due to submerged fields and deposits of mud and debris.
ImpactUni:	No reported flood damage to Extension offices; however Lake County Extension was closed during the evacuation orders.
UniResponseEfforts:	The UT Extension Flood Recovery website is still active from the May 2010 floods. This website draws heavily on materials from other EDEN institutions, and LSU AgCenter in particular.
UseofEDENResourcs:	The UT Extension Flood Recovery website is still active from the May 2010 floods. This website draws heavily on materials from other EDEN institutions, and LSU AgCenter in particular.
DisasterInstitution:	University of Tennessee [Tim Prather]

Requests for Assistance

North Dakota has made no requests for assistance from the network or our USDA partner.

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Response Notes Digest

SituationAwareness:	June 23 North Dakota has been inundated with river flooding, overland flooding and saturated soil across the state since the snow started melting. With saturated soil at fall freezeup and lots of snow to melt, officials and the NDSU Extension Service started preparing early. The Red River forms the border between North Dakota and Minnesota, and flows to the north. The Red reached its fourth highest crest on record on April 9 with lots of earthen levees, sandbag dikes, TrapBags, Hesco barriers and empty space where there used to be houses keeping damage to a minimum. However, in May, the Missouri River that flows through the northwest and central parts of the state started causing major problems. Water is being released from Garrison Dam at record rates, so homes and businesses, especially in Bismarck and Mandan, are diked. The scary part is that with snow still melting in Montana, Missouri River flooding could last throughout the summer. Also, the Souris River that begins in Canada, loops down into North Dakota then flows back into Canada has brought flooding to Minot with the river topping the dikes. As of June 23, 11,000 people are evacuated, more are being asked to leave and damage is predicted to be extensive. In addition to the Red, Missouri and Souris rivers, smaller rivers and creeks are causing problems, and soil is so saturated that about 85 percent of the crops will be prevented from being planted in some northwestern counties. Devils Lake is a closed-basin lake that continues to rise and swallow up farmland and roads. The flooding and saturated soil situation across the state is ongoing and very stressful.
ImpactUni:	No Extension offices, Research Extension Centers or the NDSU campus are directly affected by flooding (at least yet). The NDSU Extension Service was represented on the campus Crisis Response Management Team: Flood. The North Central Research Extension Center at Minot is housing about 400 evacuated pets. Extension staff in many counties and several state specialists are dropping their plans of work to focus on flood education in these times of need.
UniResponseEfforts:	The NDSU Extension Service has been developing updated flood education since January when we knew the snowmelt would cause flooding. Extension Engineer Ken Hellevang especially has developed fact sheets and Web articles plus answered scores of questions from staff and the public, and done media interviews. Other state specialists also have contributed information and developed resources. EDEN POC Becky Koch updates the www.ag.ndsu.edu/flood website, takes information requests from county agents, helps develop and print materials they want to hand out, and coordinates flood information. Extension information has been distributed in print, on the web, via news releases, through radio and TV interviews, through the @floodinfo Twitter account, on email and in other ways. Becky also share the information through the Cass-Clay Community Organizations Active in Disaster (COAD) and North Dakota Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD). The NDSU Extension Service flood website is seen by many as the go-to place for flood information. Many state agencies and organizations link to www.ag.ndsu.edu/flood.
UseofEDENResourcs:	Ironically North Dakota is very experienced with flooding, and since Ken Hellevang leads the EDEN eXtension flood CoP, he provides information to other EDEN delegates and states. We’ve shared North Dakota information through EDEN.
DisasterInstitution:	North Dakota State University [Becky Koch]

Requests for Assistance

Illinois has made no requests for assistance from the network or our USDA partner.

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Response Notes Digest

SituationAwareness:	April 26 - 27: National Weather Service estimates that 6 to 14 inches of rain has fallen over parts of the Ohio River watershed in the past week. Much of the southern half of Illinois has seen rain in the 6-inches and above amounts causing widespread flooding of streams and rivers along with much standing water in fields and rural roadways being impassable at times. The major threat to dwellings and businesses remains along the Ohio River where record-setting flooding, now characterized by the NWS as Major to Catastrophic is occurring. Portions of Cairo, Illinois have been evacuated. April 28: Flood crest now anticipated at over 60-feet in Cairo, an all time high, but below the flood wall. About 100 people in the Cairo area have been evacuated. Gates on dams on two upstream reservoirs have been closed which will cause flooding of recreational facilities including boat ramps, marinas, campgrounds, etc and could cause flooding of agricultural lands far removed from the river. May 3: Flooding continues along the Wabash, Ohio, Mississippi and Illinois Rivers in Illinois along with their tributaries. The Ohio river at Cairo, Illinois has passed previous records and is forecast to continue to rise through Wednesday. There has been additional rain over last 48 hours in the flooded area. Because of the historic levels, some areas which are not considered flood prone have been affected. Some schools in southern Illinois are closed, others have reduced bus service. Some towns have become isolated. Postal service functions have been moved to higher ground in Pope County. May 16: Flood levels continue to drop slowly in southern Illinois. Event is slowly moving to clean up and recovery stage. Agricultural flooding remains extensive. May 27: Continued flooding along the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. Flood crest now anticipated at over 60-feet in Cairo, an all time high, but below the flood wall. About 100 people in the Cairo area have been evacuated. Gates on dams on two upstream reservoirs have been closed which will cause flooding of recreational facilities including boat ramps, marinas, campgrounds, etc and could cause flooding of agricultural lands far removed from the river.
ImpactUni:	Other than minor seepage there is no effect in Extension offices at this point. At least one U of I Extension employee has evacuated their home in the Cairo area. Extension offices remain open and fully functioning at this time. May 3: The Shawneetown office of University of Illinois Extension may become cut off from access. May 27: One Extension employee has been forced to evacuate her residence.
UniResponseEfforts:	We've been in communication with all field offices offering copies of "First Steps to Flood recovery." We are making plans to deploy other information as needed. As the event unfolds, we may deploy a loan pool of moisture meters (purchased with Special Needs funds followning 2008 floodin) in the recovery phase if necessary.
UseofEDENResourcs:	Distributed 750 copies of "First Steps to Flood recovery." purchased with USDA Special Needs funding following 2008 flooding. Purdue publication "Plan Today for Tomorrow's Flood: A Flood Response Plan for Agricultural Retailers" is being made available. May 3: Over 1000 First Steps pubs have been distributed. Extension staff have also been communicating food safety and other information through local media. May 16: More than 2,500 copies of First Steps to Flood Recovery have been sent to affected offices. Many offices are working very closely with local EMA officials. Have also been using EDEN site and eXtension for specific questions which are being forwarded to me.
ResponseNoteFeedback:	Very well.
DisasterInstitution:	University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign [Rick Atterberry]

EDEN delegates can read individual Response Notes on the Intranet.

The northern North Central Region states, which were hit hard by floods in the spring and early summer, are suffering major flooding again this fall.

EDEN's flood-related Factsheets and FAQs are available on eXtension for direct access by the public.These resources may be useful in Extension outreach programs.

Delegates can share activities and needs related to floods using EDEN's Response Notes system. When you're in the form, choose the "North Central Floods Fall 2010" event. To request addition of an event name to the Response Notes system, email Pat Skinner.

Season recap: Spring 2010 produced significant flooding in many areas in the central and northeast states. Summer began with downpours across the North Central Region. These areas are being hammered again in late September. Earlier in September, Texas saw significant floods associated with Tropical Storm Hermine. New Mexico has also experienced significant flooding this summer.

Tennesee Area - Early May

May 1-4, 2010 - Major Disaster Declaration for Tennessee (#1909) declared on May 04, 2010.

After flooding Tennessee over the weekend with over a foot of rain in some areas, the heavy rain and severe weather will shift out of the Tennessee River Valley and into the Southeast. Downpours and some severe thunderstorms will impact the Carolinas, Georgia, Alabama, southeast Mississippi and the Florida Panhandle, according to the FEMA National Situation Report, May 3, 5:30 a.m. EDT. According to this report, rainfall accumulations will range from 1-5 inches, with 8 inches possible across the western side of the Florida Panhandle. Severe weather will continue across Ohio, southeast Indiana and Kentucky, with very heavy rainfall expected. The weather system bringing heavy rain to the region over the weekend will continue moving east today, though river flooding will be ongoing, especially in Kentucky. Hail, high winds and tornados are also expected.

This event was added to the Response Notes system.
Flood Help Conference Calls resumed Monday, May 10.

The Dakotas and Northeast - March-June

On June 22, National Weather Service was showing thirteen stream gauges at major flood stage in South Dakota and Iowa and twenty-seven over a broader area that extended southeastward toward Indiana.

Flooding in March and April was significant. Central South Dakota farmers suffered from floods along the James and Big Sioux rivers, as well as rising lakes. Ice jams along the White River in south central South Dakota forced evacuation of farms and homes. The northeast corner of the state also was heavily impacted, and anticipates a Federal declaration.

In North Dakota, the Red River crested lower than had been predicted and flood-fight efforts were largely successful. South Dakota is preparing for increases in West Nile Virus as a result of the floods. South Dakota Extension facilities were not impacted.

Kim Cassel (SD) used EDEN and eXtension flood resources to enhance a local preparedness web site that is an off-shoot of the state Extension preparedness site. The hit-rate doubled during the flood emergencey. The Brookings County Emergency Manager shared the EDEN/eXtension flood resources with state emergency management officials and the information went directly to their IT folks for use in the local and state EOCs.

The EDEN publication First Steps to Flood Recovery had been distributed previously in South Dakota to county Extension and Emergency Management offices. The publication was re-ordered in 2010 and more copies distributed to flood prone areas of the state. The audio files of this publication were posted to the web page and shared with emergency management.

April brought rain, also, to some Northeast states in amounts that have not been seen in 200 years. Flooding was widespread and Presidential declarations for those floods were announced. "Northeast Floods April 2010" was added to the Response Notes system

EDEN Captures Situations, Needs, Activities

EDEN has created a "Response Notes" form and is encouraging delegates to use it as a means of capturing response activities and letting EDEN and our federal partners know if we can help Extension respond. The system was launched for the April 24 tornados. May flooding is the first activation for floods. The Response Notes form is posted in the Disaster Watch section.

Flood Help Conference Calls

EDEN began assistance efforts early, based on flood forecasts for the season, beginning with the Dakotas (Red River of the North) and continuing along the Mississippi and tributaries as the heavy snows of winter melted into already-swollen rivers. Working within EDEN and through its eXtension flood team, EDEN announced weekly Flood Conference Calls. Extension educators who felt they were facing spring floods, whether forecasted or based on history, were invited to join an EDEN conference call on March 15. Ken Hellevang, NDSU Extension Engineer, lead a discussion on:

How to prepare for the floods
Available EDEN and eXtension resources
What's being developed
Proactive steps extension educators can take to help local citizens

The calls were repeated twice at weekly intervals until the imminent threat subsided and restarted May 10, following the Tennessee Area Early May floods .

Point of contact for the EDEN Flood Call support system is Virginia Morgan (AL).

Introduction

A summary description of the event will appear here, along with a general statement of the nature of EDEN's response to the floods.

The content of this page is archived for its potential use in defining future responses. Some of the outlinks may no longer be working.

EDEN-Hosted Conference Call

EDEN held a Flood Recovery Conference Call on Friday, June 27, 2008, inviting all interested EDEN delegates (especially those in the flood-affected Midwestern states).

This call was recorded and can now be downloaded.

A few resources were discussed on the call. While listening, please use the following links as quick references:

National Volunteer Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD)
- NVOAD's National Manual on Long-Term Recovery
First Steps to Flood Recovery (Purdue Extension)
AidMatrix

Moisture Meters (information for purchasing):

Protometer Mini C Wood Moisture Meter -- available from Forestry Suppliers and Professional Equipment
Tramex Meter (nondestructive) -- available from Professional Equipment

EDEN Hosted eXtension Chat

On April 7, the eXtension Disaster Issues Community hosted its first chat session on flood recovery. During the session, participants posted their questions about drying out homes and other building structures; mold, mildew, what to keep, what to discard; state and federal resources for recovery; and other related items. Our disaster issues experts answered the questions via text chat. This session was sponsored by the Extension Disaster Education Network (EDEN). A summary of the session follows. Go to http://connect.extension.iastate.edu/p57654819/ to read the unedited transcript.

On hand to answer questions were Dr. Claudette Reichel, Dr. Kenneth Hellevang, Eric Evans, and Steve Cain .

The above notice was copied from the eXtension source page on October 4, 2009. Visit that page for an edited transcript of the dialogue.

Agricultural Issues

This page offers a number of topic-specific resources for ag-related issues following a flood. Please note the state for which each of the resources was developed. As recommended recovery activities may differ among regions, or even states, EDEN advises that you contact a specialist in your state to determine the direct applicability of the resource to your needs.

Farm Buildings and Property

Sandbagging (Source: eXtension)
Livestock and Poultry Buildings After the Flood - (Source: North Carolina State University)
Sizing and Safety Tips for Standby Power Generators (Source: University of Missouri Extension)

Livestock

Water Requirements and Safety for Cattle Following a Disaster (Source: LSU AgCenter)
Feeding Cattle Following a Disaster (Source: LSU AgCenter)
Disaster Recovery Resources for Livestock, Horses and More (Source: Texas AgriLife)
Flood Injuries in Horses (Source: LSU AgCenter)
Post-Flood Neurologic Disorders in Horses (Source: LSU AgCenter)

Fruits and Vegetables

Fresh fruits and vegetables that have been partially or completely submerged in flood water, or that might have come in contact with contaminated water, are not safe to consume. There is a high health risk of developing disease from consuming these products. Flood water may be contaminated with sewage, animal waste, heavy metals, pathogenic microorganisms, or other contaminants. These contaminants are not only on the surface of the fruits and vegetables, but may move into plant tissues. The Food and Drug Administration considers these products “adulterated” and not fit for consumption. (Note: Pooled or standing water after a rainfall that is not likely to be contaminated should not be considered flooding.)

If your produce is in close proximity to a flooded area but has not come in contact with flood water, prevent cross contamination by keeping harvesting or cleaning equipment and personnel away from the flooded area during growth and harvest.

If an unplanted field has been partially or completely flooded, determine the source of flood water and determine whether there are significant threats to human health. Allow soils to dry sufficiently and rework the soil, before planting crops. Microbial soil testing can provide valuable information regarding relative health risks, but sampling in itself does not guarantee the lack of human pathogens.

Produce from flood-damaged gardens should not be sold at the farmers market or farm stand until the risk of contamination is gone. Produce should also not be used for home canning.

As always, proper food handling methods in the kitchen are important for food safety. They include, washing hands while preparing food; cleaning and disinfecting work surfaces, equipment and supplies; using potable water; and, “if in doubt, throwing it out”.

Reference: FDA Guide to Minimize Microbial Food Safety Hazards for Fresh Fruits and Vegetables

By Sandra Bastin, Associate Extension Professor, Food and Nutrition Specialist, University of Kentucky, College of Agriculture

Floods and their aftermath can expose many threats to life and safety, depending on response and recovery efforts. Workers who respond to flooded areas are most at risk. Safety and health hazards can be expected in flood zone areas.

Stay safe in flooded recovery areas

FEMA prepared the information below for their staff working in flooded areas.

Some hazards associated with floods and cleanups are listed below:

Airborne microorganisms; microbial growth (e.g. bacteria and fungi)
Heat stress
Mosquitoes
Slippery and unstable surfaces
Fatigue or exhaustion from working long shifts
Floodwater exposure; contaminated floodwaters
Sharp or jagged debris
Electrical hazards
Contact with animal and human remains
Air contaminants/Chemical exposures

Please contact your site safety and health official for area specific guidance.

General Safety:

Seek immediate first aid treatment or medical evaluation for any injuries and illnesses.
Report injuries or illnesses to your supervisor and site safety official.
Do not walk through flowing or standing water.
Do not drive through a flooded area.
Stay away from downed power lines and electrical wires.
Watch for animals, especially snakes.
Look before you step.
Be alert for gas leaks.

Personal Safety:

Get Immunizations and be sure that they are current, e.g., Tetanus.
Use hand sanitizer. Wash hands with soap and clean water, preferably. When available, wash hands before work breaks, meal breaks and at the end of the work shift.
Keep safe potable water close by for drinking and washing. Consider all water unsafe until local authorities announce that the public water supply is safe
Use insect repellant
Use sunscreen
Have watertight boots with steel toe and insole (not just steel shank; slip resistant).
Wear long sleeved shirts and pants. This may decrease the risk of mosquito and other insect bites.

References:

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (2017). Floods
https://www.osha.gov/dts/weather/flood Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Immunization Recommendations for Disaster Responders, https://www.cdc.gov/disasters/disease/responderimmun.html

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Hazard Based Guidelines: Protective Equipment for Workers in Hurricane Flood Response, https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/emres/pre-workers.html

People deciding to invest in restoring storm-damaged property should be aware of regulatory and insurance provisions associated with the National Flood Insurance Program. These may restrict construction and impact the future cost of owning the property. Drastic increases in flood insurance premium were set in motion by legislation in July 2012, some of which was reversed by legislation in March 2014.

Most development regulation associated with the NFIP impacts buildings that are too low in the flood zone. It is more important than ever for people to learn about flood risk at their property, make informed decisions about how much to invest in a property that is too low, and about how to avoid becoming one of those too-low properties. (See Definitions and Technical Resources, below, for explanation of terms.) Development regulations apply even if the property is not covered by flood insurance.

Be aware that receiving federal assistance for restoring or elevating a flood-damaged building or a building that is in the flood zone usually obligates the recipient to purchase flood insurance for the building being restored.

Refer to these EDEN pages for more information on the National Flood Insurance Programs and the 2012 and 2014 legislative changes to that program.

Four recommendations can help people who are rebuilding or repairing damaged buildings and recovering businesses:

Before you invest in restoring your building, find out whether you are (or will soon be) too low in the flood zone, and how your flood insurance premiums will be going up faster than others as a consequence of the flood insurance reform legislation.
Look for updated flood risk information and build to avoid that risk -- even if you are not required to do so. There may be new flood maps on the drawing board for your area. Your area may be in line for a new flood study. Don't try to beat the system by getting a quick permit to build to old standards.
Recognize that maps DO get revised periodically and the flood levels typically go up - not down. If you build to the current standard, you could well be too low in the flood zone when new maps come out. Consider adding a measure of safety (feet above the minimum requirements) when deciding how high is high enough for YOU.
When deciding whether to recover a business, evaluate the impact of rising flood insurance rates on your bottom line. The NFIP Reforms raise the limit on annual increases from 10% per year to 18-20% per year - across the board. Property that is not the insured's primary residence and business property that is rated based on being Pre-FIRM started seeing 20-25% premium increases in 2014. Buildings rated based on having been built in compliance with a previous flood map (called "grandfathering") were scheduled to loose those premium discounts in 2015, but the 2014 legislation fully restored "Grandfathering". In each case of premium rising from a Pre-FIRM rate, the increases will take the premiums to actuarial rates, based on the current risk.

Permits Required - Opportunity to Avoid Costly Mistakes

Having to get a permit to rebuild can put people in touch with those involved in managing flood risk in the community.

Even in communities that do not enforce a building code, ALL building, rebuilding and restoration work in the flood zone requires a permit from the local office that ensures that new and substantially improved construction is protected from future floods. When the building is too low in the flood zone and the estimated damage is substantial, the permit will be delayed. Substantial damage means the cost to restore the building to its pre-damaged condition is 50% or more of the fair market value of the building before this damage occurred. If substantial damage is confirmed, the permit must be denied. A substantially damaged building must be elevated to flood protection levels before it can be repaired, or rebuilt at the higher elevation. Requiring permits and enforcing the substantial damage rule are the responsibility of the local government; failure to enforce these regulations jeopardizes the availability of flood insurance in your community.

FEMA/NFIP Student Manual on Substantial Damage and Substantial Improvement
FEMA Substantial Improvement/Substantial Damage Desk Reference (2010)

Since its inception, the NFIP has been able rate structures for flood insurance based on the map that was in effect when the building was permitted or constructed. That practice, known as "Grandfathering," was stricken in the 2012 NFIP Reform Act (also known as Biggert-Waters), but fully restored in the March 2014 Insurance Affordability Act. The 2014 Act became law before the no-grandfathering provision of the 2012 legislation had been implemented.

The "grandfathering" of rates (basing them on prior maps) tends to conceal the fact that newer FIRMs show a property to be at higher flood risk. FEMA, however, for many years, used grandfathering as a sales pitch for insurance promotions: "Buy insurance now before the new maps are adopted." The fear of losing Grandfathering changed the message to "Raise your building, lower your premium." In the post-flood environment, when revised FIRMs are likely to show higher flood risk, people too often rush to rebuild using the current FIRM. While this may save on flood insurance, it represents building at greater risk.

These resources can help you find your local floodplain official and particulars about the communities that participate in the National flood Insurance Program (NFIP)

NFIP Community Status Book - Use this to find out which communities in your state participate in the NFIP, when they entered, and the dates of their first and current Effective FIRM. Data are presented in Adobe PDF, comma separated values (CSV) text file, and HTML formats.
State NFIP Coordinators - maintained by the Association of State Floodplain Managers. State coordinators will know their local floodplain administrators.

Definitions and Technical Resources

Actuarial rates for flood insurance - As used here the word "actuarial" refers to the rate that would be charged a similar property that does not have a discount (break, subsidy). The word itself may have specified, broader meaning within the insurance industry. The changes imposed in 2012 by Congress appear to be intended to move the NFIP itself toward being more actuarially sound.

Base Flood Elevation (BFE) - The base flood is the 1%-annual-chance flood, commonly called the "hundred year flood." Base Flood Elevation is the water-surface elevation of the base flood. The depth of the base flood can be calculated by subtracting the ground elevation from the BFE. The probability is 1% that rising water will reach BFE height in any year; which compounds over a thirty-year period to 26% or more.

In the flood zone - This term is used by most people to mean the property is in the Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA), as depicted on the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM). The NFIP flood zones are A and V zones and sometimes have letters or numbers following the A or V (e.g. AE, AH, AO, VE). The officially adopted FIRM is the basis for all flood insurance rating. The community may be using a more restrictive map with broader flood zones and higher flood standards for regulating floodplain development. The community's regulatory map also may include allowances for increased runoff, subsidence, failure of dams and levees, or sea level rise, which are not reflected on the FIRM.

Too low- From an insurance-rating standpoint, "too low" means the elevation of the building is lower than the BFE. Building elevation in the A-zones is measured at the top of the lowest floor. Elevation in the V-zones is measured at the bottom of the lowest horizontal structural member of the foundation. Enclosures that are lower than the living space may be considered the "lowest floor" in some circumstances; machinery and equipment located below the living space may raise insurance rates. The following resources may be helpful:
NFIP Elevation Certificate with lowest floor diagrams
FEMA Technical Bulletin 1-08: Openings in Foundation Walls and Walls of Enclosures

From a practical standpoint, "too low" means the risk of flooding is higher, a fact that has been concealed till now by artificially low (subsidized) insurance rating. The lower you are relative to BFE, the higher your risk of flooding. Being “too low” in the flood zone can cause hardship for the owner if the building is substantially damaged by fire, flood, tornado, earthquake or other event and must be raised before it can be repaired. The cost of raising the building usually is not covered by home owners insurance, but may be offset to some extent by the Increased Cost of Compliance coverage of the NFIP policy.

NFIP Community Status Book - Use this to find out which communities in your state participate in the NFIP, when they entered, and the dates of their first and current Effective FIRM. Data are presented in Adobe PDF, comma separated values (CSV) text file, and HTML formats.

Pre-FIRM - Structure that was built before the community received its first Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM).

State NFIP Coordinators - maintained by the Association of State Floodplain Managers. State coordinators will know their local floodplain administrators.

NFIP Insurance Manuals - These manuals include insurance rating tables. the manuals have been changing every 6-months to gradually implement the provisions of the 2012 and 2014 legistation.

The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) was created by Congress in 1968/9 as an integrated floodplain regulatory and flood insurance program. Significant flood mitigation activities - designed to reduce insurance claims - were added to the program in the 1994 and 2004 reforms. The NFIP is administered today by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

ALERT - August 2017

The NFIP expires at the end of September 2017 and must be re-authorized by Congress. You can follow the legislative progress and issues attached to the re-authorization process by monitoring the website of the Coalition for Sustainable Flood Insurance (CSFI.info). CSFI is a national coalition formed in response to the 2012 Reform legislation.

NFIP Reform legislation that became law in July 2012, significantly increased premiums and fundamentally abandoned the basic deal upon which the program was founded - essentially that the government would provide flood insurance at reasonable rates in exchange for communities regulating development to reduce future flood risk. The solvency and debt-reduction requirements imposed by the 2012 reforms - together with the raising of the limit on annual premium increases to 20% - virtually ensured that premiums would be going up across the board, across the nation, in all zones. But they would go up faster on properties that are too low in the flood zone and losing their subsidized and grandfathered rates. Flood Insurance Affordability legislation that became law in March 2014 restored grandfathering for flood insurance rates, but continued to chip away at subsidized rates for structures that were built before the community received its initial FIRM.

People who should be most attentive are owners of property that is a) in a special flood hazard area, b) below the elevation required for today's new construction, c) and in one of these categories:

Pre-FIRM rated - i.e., built before 1975 or before there was a Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM)
- Rate increases to reflect the risk shown on the current FIRM will be reasonable for properties that are the principal residence of the insured.
- Rates for other residential structures (rental houses, camps) are rising at 15-20% per year.
- Rates for business properties are rising at 25% per year.
- Rates for Severe Repetitive Loss properties will rise 25% per year. These properties have file multiple flood insurance claims and their policies are handled by FEMA Special Direct Facility.
- Rates for Substantially Damaged or Substantially Improved properties. These properties should be Post-FIRM elevation-rated, but many were never converted from Pre-FIRM to Post0FIRM because the substantial repair of improvement was not noticed by the system.

Post-FIRM rated - i.e., the structure was built in compliance with a FIRM (current or historic FIRM) or, at some point, the property owner chose to have the flood insurance elevation-rated based on the FIRM that was effective at that time, because the premium would be less than the Pre-FIRM premium. These properties are seeing minimal rate increases

The pair of NFIP reforms in 2012 and 2014 left the program with a number of additional costs for insureds to bear including the following:

Surcharge per policy per year.
- For the primary residence of the insured - $25/year
- For all other structures and policies - $250/year
Reserve fund (to cover claims in high-loss years)
- a percentage of the premium
Increased Federal Policy Fee
Congress required FEMA to give them a plan for how FEMA would repay the program's $25 Billion debt. There are about 5.5 million policies across which to distribute this obligation. There as been discussion about the 2017 re-authorization of the NFIP removing the debt-repayment requirement.

NFIP - The Original Deal

The NFIP was created with the intent of reducing future flood damage. Congress essentially made a deal with local governments, which can be summarized as follows:

Congress agreed to provide affordable (subsidized) flood insurance for properties that are already in harms way, and to insure newly constructed buildings at risk-based rates; buildings rated on risk would be allowed to keep their risk-class rate basis even if the true risk went up.
Communities wishing to have flood insurance available to their constituents agreed to regulate new construction such that buildings would not suffer damage in a flood of a certain magnitude. The benchmark flood was defined as the flood that has a 1% chance of occurring in any year (the 1% annual-chance flood, also known as the 100-year flood). Communities agreed also to enforce a 50% rule, which meant they would treat substantial improvement and substantial repairs as new construction when it came to preventing future flood damage.

The insurance subsidy is provided by giving the NFIP authority to borrow from the U.S. Treasury when it cannot pay claims; the NFIP must repay the debt. The program exercised this authority several times, repaying the debt each time, but has been unable to repay the $18 Billion debt incurred to honor claims that arose in 2005 hurricanes (Katrina, Rita and Wilma) and another $9 Billion incurred in 2012 for Hurricane Sandy. Congress has requested (in the 2012 reform legislation) a 10-year payback plan for the outstanding debt.

Program Assumptions and Adjustments

The success of the NFIP would hinge on the validity of assumptions such as these:

that people want flood insurance and will purchase it if they don't have to;
that the federal government can define flood risk accurately and in ways that are useful to communities;
that a program that sells insurance for less than the cost of paying claims, and that cannot charge enough to build a catastrophic-reserve can survive;
that regulating new construction to a 1%-annual chance risk level, while allowing that 1% level to increase by a foot, would reduce future flood damage;
that communities actually have the capacity to enforce floodplain development regulations they have adopted; and
that if all the rules for new construction and substantial improvement and repair were followed, the old buildings would eventually go away and we'd be left with newly-constructed buildings that have very little risk of flooding.

Over the years the program has succeeded in guiding development such that buildings built under floodplain management regulations suffer less damage than older structures. It has been criticized by some as tell people HOW to build in high-risk areas rather than discouraging them from building there. As certain assumptions have been shown not to hold, Congress has amended and FEMA has enhanced the program to protect floodplains and encourage communities to be more pro-active in reducing losses.

In 1973, "mandatory purchase" was introduced, requiring lenders to ensure that flood-zone properties securing mortgages were protected by flood insurance. Penalties for lenders not enforcing mandatory purchase guidelines were instituted later, and continue to rise.

The 1994 Reform Act added two flood mitigation programs; these take money from the Flood Insurance Fund to pay for activities that will reduce the inventory of flood-prone properties. Increased Cost of Compliance (ICC) coverage, as part of the standard NFIP policy, encourages enforcement of the 50% substantial damage rule by providing funds to be used for elevating the building. The Flood Mitigation Assistance program provides grants to communities to floodproof or acquire properties in their jurisdications that are making repetitive claims on the NFIP. The 1994 Reform Act also formalized the Community Rating System (CRS), an initiative begun in the early nineties to encourage communities to help reduce NFIP claims by exceeding the minimum standards of the NFIP. Examples of exceeding minimum standards include requiring buildings to be one to three feet higher than the minimum required elevation; regulating construction in areas outside the special flood hazard areas; protecting the storage capacity of the floodplain; zoning the floodplain for low-density development; and developing managed drainage plans. CRS also encourages the community to reduce flood insurance claims by educating consumers and by taking steps to reduce the number of flood-prone buildings in their communities. Rewards for the Community Rating System are realized as reduced premiums for policy-holders in the community.

Despite these attempts to improve the solvency of the NFIP, the program continued to carry a large number of properties that were paying subsidized rates, and many of those were making repeated claims. For some properties, the total claims exceed the value of the insured property. The program, however, could not deny flood insurance to properties that flooded repeatedly, nor could it charge higher premiums based on the property's flood history.

NFIP reforms in 2004 created two additional flood mitigation programs - also to be funded through the flood insurance fund - and gave the NFIP the authority to increase premiums by 50% per flood on severe repetitive loss properties if they refused an offer of mitigation assistance. The program came on line slowly, as did a companion element of that legislation that would make ICC coverage available for the non-federal match of a mitigation grant project (without there being a concurrent flood loss).

This 2011 article by John Egan on InsuranceQuotes.com presents interesting NFIP statistics and captures the sense of frustration among legislators that lead to the 2012 NFIP Reform Act.

2012 NFIP Reform - Deal Off

The 2012 NFIP Reform legislation passed as Title II of the Transportation Bill (H.R. 4348) and was signed into law (PL 112-141) on July 6, 2012. It extended the NFIP for five years and made a number of changes related to improving the solvency of the NFIP, flood risk mapping (including mapping of levee-protected areas), and flood mitigation programs. It raised the limit on annual premium increases to 20% (from 10%) and requires FEMA to submit a ten-year repayment plan for the program's debt to the U.S. Treasury, most of which was incurred during the 2005 hurricane season.

Since the beginning of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) owners of buildings that found themselves too low in the flood zone through no fault of their own have been given a break on their flood insurance premiums. These properties have been insured by the NFIP, a federally run insurance program, at rates that do not reflect the true risk of flood damage. The policies are subsidized by the NFIP, which can borrow from the U.S. Treasury when premium collections are not sufficient to pay claims. The loan must be repaid.

The no fault part of this condition means one of two things:

The building was built before 1975 or before the community (governing jurisdiction) received its first Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM). These properties are insured at Pre-FIRM rates, unless the owner shows by an official elevation survey that the building is NOT too low and elects to be rated based on elevation.
The building was built Post-FIRM, in compliance with a FIRM, with a permit from the community, but a more recent FIRM shows the building to be at greater risk of flooding. These buildings have been grandfathered administratively, and allowed to keep the rate-class (flood zone and building elevation relative to BFE) that applied at the time of construction.
Pre-FIRM and grandfathered rates were discontinued by the 2012 legislation. Grandfathering was fully restored by the 2014 legislation, before its cancellation had been implemented. No policies lost their grandfathered rates. Pre-FIRM rates remain with the property, not the owner. However, for all Pre-FIRM rated policies except the residence of the insured, rates are going "actuarial" at a rate of 18%-25% increase per year.

See these related articles in EDEN:

Flood Premiums Rising Dramatically
Flood Insurance Issues in Recovery

Definitions and Technical Resources

State NFIP Coordinators - maintained by the Association of State Floodplain Managers. State coordinators will know their local floodplain administrators.

This page was first published in November 2012 as people in Louisiana, New York and New Jersey were recovering from Hurricane Isaac and SuperStorm Sandy. At that time, Congress had enacted legislation that removed premium subsidies and grandfathering; these changes were just beginning to be implemented and were not widely known. Recovery decisions needed to be informed about NFIP changes that would likely raise the future cost of ownership of the properties in which survivors were investing repair and restoration dollars.

Much of the 2012 "Biggert-Waters NFIP Reform Act" was overturned by the 2014 "Grimm-Waters Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act". FEMA published this Overview of the 2014 legislation.

The 2012 legislation established two schedules by which discounted rates would be phased out: one for Pre-FIRM policies (rates increase 25% per year increase till rates reflect today's risk) and another for Post-FIRM Grandfathered policies (rates increase to reflect full current risk in five increments). Since the 2014 legislation restored grandfathering, this page now shows only the sample calculation of the 25% per year for Pre-FIRM buildings.

NFIP 2012 Reform legislation passed as Title II of the Transportation Bill (H.R. 4348) and was signed into law (PL 112-141) on July 6, 2012. It extended the NFIP for five years and made a number of changes related to improving the solvency of the NFIP, flood risk mapping (including mapping of levee protected areas), and flood mitigation programs. It raised the limit on annual premium increases to 20% (from 10%) and required FEMA to submit a ten-year repayment plan for the program's debt to the U.S. Treasury, most of which was incurred during the 2005 hurricane season, and it now includes debt incurred to pay claims in Super Storm Sandy. The solvency and debt-reduction requirements - together with the raising of the limit on annual premium increases to 18%-20% - virtually ensure that premiums will be going up across the board. But they will go up faster on properties that are too low in the flood zone and losing their subsidies.

Pre-FIRM and Grandfathered Rate Changes

Since the beginning of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) owners of buildings that found themselves too low in the flood zone through no fault of their own have been given a break on their flood insurance premiums. These properties have been insured by the NFIP, a federally run insurance program, at rates that do not reflect the true risk of flood damage. The policies are subsidized by the NFIP. The NFIP can borrow from the U.S. Treasury when premium collections are not sufficient to pay claims, but that loan must be repaid.

The no fault part of this condition means one of two things:

The building was built before 1975 or before the community (governing jurisdiction) received its first Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM). These properties are insured at Pre-FIRM rates, unless the owner shows by an official elevation survey that the building is NOT too low and elects to be rated as Post-FIRM, based on elevation.
The building was built Post-FIRM, in compliance with a FIRM, with a permit from the community, but a more recent FIRM shows the building to be at greater risk of flooding. Rates for these buildings have been grandfathered administratively, and allowed to keep the rate-class (flood zone and building elevation relative to BFE) that applied at the time of construction.

Under the 2012 legislation, discounted insurance rates were to be discontinued for all properties except Pre-FIRM primary residences that had not lost their qualification for the rate. (See How Residential Property Loses its Pre-FIRM Rating, below.)

Pre-FIRM rates are being discontinued for all business properties and other buildings that are not the insured's primary residence. Pre-FIRM rates for insured properties were to expire with termination of an existing policy and would not available for a new policy on the property. Currently insured properties that no longer qualify for Pre-FIRM rates will see their premiums increase 25% per year until actuarial rates are achieved.
Under BW-12, grandfathered rates would be discontinued, with increases toward actuarial rates being phased in over a 5-year period, 20% of the increase being added each year. The The March 2014 legislation (Grimm-Waters Act) restored grandfathering before FEMA began implementing this provision.

How Residential Property Loses its Pre-FIRM Rating

A Pre-FIRM primary residence will lose its qualification for Pre-FIRM rates under the following conditions and situations:

If, after July 6, 2012, the building is substantially damaged and the cost to restore it to its pre-damaged condition is 50% of the fair market value of the building before damage occurred. For substantial damage, the “cost” is the cost to restore the building to its pre-damage condition - even if you don’t plan to spend that much or to restore it fully. It also includes the cost of discretionary improvements you plan to make as part of the restoration project.
If the flood insurance claims history on the building meets one of the following criteria:
- Total NFIP claims paid for flood-related building damage exceed the fair market value of the building
- The property is a severe repetitive loss (SRL) property – A single family property with 1-4 residences is an SRL property if it has incurred flood-related damage resulting in four or more claims payments for building damage that exceed $5,000 each, OR, two claims payments for building damage that together exceed the value of the insured building.
If the owner of a repetitive loss property refuses an offer of mitigation assistance (to raise or relocate the building), including an offer under the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP)

Also, based on the 2014 Legislation

All policies will see a $25 surcharge (if the property is the insured's primary residence) or a $250 per year surcharge (if the property is used for any other purpose, including rental homes, camps, churches, business, etc.). The surcharge will continue until NO POLICY is being written with a Pre-FIRM subsidized rate.

The 2012 legislation said that Pre-FIRM qualification was lost upon sale of the property and that the buyer would immediately pay full risk-based rate. The 2014 legislation eliminated this "at-sale" provision and established that Pre-FIRM applies to the building, not the property owner.

Sample Calculation - Loss of Pre-FIRM Rate

This sample calculation is based on information provided in this FEMA Brochure, which includes the graphic shown here.

According to the 2012 Reform Act, when a property no longer qualifies for a Pre-FIRM rate the premium will go up 25% per year until actuarial rates are achieved. (2014 legislation maintained this rate for most categories but reduced it slightly for some.) This escalation could take many years.

Premium calculation is for $250,000 building coverage only (no contents coverage), for a single-family, one-story structure without a basement located in Zone AE at 4 feet below BFE (left) and at BFE (right). Rating is per the FEMA flood insurance manual dated October 1, 2012) and a standard National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) deductible.

FEMA created this graphic to illustrate the premium savings earned by raising a building that is four feet below BFE up to BFE. The premium information, however, is useful also for demonstrating the effect of losing a Pre-FIRM rate, where the building is shown to be at BFE-4 on the newer map and has lost it's qualification for a Pre-FIRM rate.

The 2012 Reform Act discontinues grandfathered rating, allowing five years to convert to the rate appropriate for risk shown on the currently effective FIRM. The 2012 and 2014 Acts require the property to be rated as a Zone AE property at BFE-4 feet. For the example property, a Pre-FIRM rated premium of $2,000 per year would be a reasonable estimate. The risk-based premium for BFE-4 (in the example) is $9,500.

The premium increases at 25% per year would look like this:

Annual increase (25% per year)
Current Pre-FIRM Premium (est.)	$2,000
Year 1 Premium (25% over $2,000)	$2,500
Year 2 Premium (25% over $2,500)	$3,125
Year 3 Premium (25% over $3,125)	$3,906
Year 4 Premium (25% over $3,906)	$4,883
Year 5 Premium (25% over $4,883)	$6,104
Year 6 Premium (25% over $6,104)	$7,630
Year 7 Premium (25% over $7,630)	$9,537 or risk-based, if lower

FEMA began phasing out Pre-FIRM rates for second homes in January 2013. It has implemented rate increases for different building-use categories at various points and most recently implemented the 25% increase for "business uses" starting April 1, 2016.

Plain Language - Links to Technical Resources

State NFIP Coordinators - maintained by the Association of State Floodplain Managers. State coordinators will know their local floodplain administrators.

Bulletin to NFIP Insurers Regarding Implementation of the Reform Act and other Policy Matters - March 29, 2013.

eXtension

The Flood and Flooding articles and FAQs on eXtension are grouped in four categories that can be reached through the following links:

Links to the latest eXtension.org articles and FAQs related to floods and flooding are provided below.

More info on Floods and Flooding from eXtension

If a Disaster Strikes, Could Your Finances Weather The Storm?
Last Updated: 9/11/2017 2:40 PM
Can a flood barrier be incorporated in a brick home on a concrete slab?
Last Updated: 11/10/2016 3:52 PM
Frequently Asked Questions About Flooded Gardens and Lawns
Last Updated: 11/10/2016 8:12 AM
Food Safety During an Emergency
Last Updated: 11/10/2016 7:57 AM
What happens to fire ants during a flood?
Last Updated: 11/9/2016 1:48 PM
2016 Extension Disaster Education Network Webinar Series
Last Updated: 9/6/2016 1:48 PM
3 Tips for Buying Flood Insurance
Last Updated: 6/21/2016 10:53 AM
Fifteen Questions for Hurricane Preparation
Last Updated: 4/19/2016 12:33 PM
Hitch and Go Safely. What will your truck or tractor pull safely?
Last Updated: 4/19/2016 12:30 PM
Integrated Pest Management for Mosquitoes
Last Updated: 4/13/2016 4:03 PM

The resources on this page are meant to address flooding issues caused by hurricane, inland flooding from rainfall, and rapid snow melt.

University Resources

Publication developed by Purdue for state branding

Purdue University - First Steps to Flood Recovery
Help yourself, helping people with disabilities, pets, salvaging keepsakes, furniture, carpeting, flooring, government and community. See also: Video and Audio files - on eXtension

University Flood Websites

Cornell University Flood Resources
Home, food safety, after flooding recovery

K-State Research and Extension
Cleaning up after a flood, farming after a flood, children and disasters

North Dakota State University Flood Page
House and home, family and friends, farm and ranch

Penn State University Flood Resources

Rutgers University
Recovery clean-up, home, children and disasters, food safety

University of Alaska -- Flood Recovery
Safety and health, clean-up, and septic systems

University of Missouri
Cleaning up, farming after flood, disinfecting wells

Virginia Tech University -- Emergency Preparedness
Disaster preparedness and recovery resources

West Virginia University Cooperative Extension Service
Disaster Preparedness and Recovery Resources

Federal Resources

Centers for Disease Control -- Flood Resources
Before the storm, after flood recovery resources, public health, safety, clean-up, mold

Ready.gov - Floods
Before, during, and after flood, safety, flood insurance

Advice for Saving Damaged Family Treasures is from Heritage Preservation, The National Insitute for Conservation.

Other resources found here were gathered in past flood seasons (calendar years).

Resource requests and responses for the current season are shown on the
Current Requests page.

Preparing homes for long-term inundation

As the Corps announced unprecedented release of water from dams on the Missouri river, delegates in Iowa and Missouri asked for help finding resources on preparing a home for long term flooding besides removing contents, such as, open or close doors, how to store items in attics, safety for propane tanks, etc. An email was sent to delegates June 3. A subsequent request for similar information in Spanish yielded no returns, so "Preparing a Home that will be Flooded" was translated by ACES' current Spanish-language translation service provider, under the eXtension project.

Replies to the request:

From Becky Koch and Ken Hellevang (ND)

Preparing a Home that will be Flooded
http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/flood/home/preparing-a-home-that-will-be-flooded

Cómo preparar una casa para una inundación [SPANISH translation of "Preparing a Home....] MSWord file, as received from ACES
PDF with NDSU indicia/logo:
http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/pubs/languages/PreparingAHomeThatWillBeFlooded-Spanish2.pdf

Dealing with Continuing Basement Seepage
http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/flood/home/dealing-with-continuing-basement-seepage

From Nat Tablante (MD) Links to pages of the British Columbia Provencial Emergency Program. Original links are no longer working, but additional resources of interest can be found at this link: http://www.pep.bc.ca/index.html .

Flood Proofing your Home
Protecting your Family and your Home against Flooding
Is your Family Prepared? (Canadian Government Preparedness Website)

Howard VanDijk (SC-Retired, now with FEMA) reminded us of a couple of farm prep sections in the Florida IFAS "Disaster Handbook - Chapter 9"

Preparing to Evacuate your Farm (Section 9.9)
Pesticide Storage Concerns during a Flood - Prevention and Emergency Response
(Section 9.10)
http://disaster.ifas.ufl.edu/chap9fr.htm

Sherry Nelson (MO) recommended this fact sheet for the detail it provides about securing propane tanks.

Reducing the Impact of Flooding – Propane Tanks (Missouri DNR)
http://www.dnr.mo.gov/pubs/ReducingImpactFloodingPropaneTanks.pdf

Chlorine Bleach - Mold Removal

In a discussion that included inputs from eleven delegates representing six states, it was found that there is variation among our state extension resources on the amount of bleach to be used when removing flood-induced mold, but all were essentially consistent with EPA guidelines. The EDEN Mold page is extensive, and the point of contact for that page - Ken Hellavang (ND) – wound up our discussion with a summary, from which the following salient points are derived:

The EPA does not list using chlorine bleach or any biocide for mold removal. Part of the reason for that recommendation is that mold must be physically removed to eliminate the health hazard of mold. The other is that there is a hazard associated with using any biocide including bleach.
However, flood cleanup includes removal of bacteria and other biological materials in addition to mold. Therefore, for flood cleanup, the recommendation continues to be to use chlorine bleach or other approved biocide on non-porous and semi-porous materials AFTER the material has been thoroughly cleaned. Chlorine is inactivated by organic material so unless the surface is clean, the bleach will not properly disinfect/sanitize the surface.
Chlorine bleach is a registered product that carries a label identifying how to use the product and the application for which it has been approved. Clorox bleach for example indicates that the concentration for their product is ¾ cup of bleach per gallon of water, that enough of the solution needs to be applied to keep the surface wet for at least five minutes, the surface should be rinsed and dried. (The label is the law for a biocide.)

In the discussion a relatively new HUD publication was brought to our attention by Howard Van Dijk (SC-Retired) - Rehabbing Flooded Houses: A Guide for Builders and Contractors. Rehabbing Flooded Houses is a guidebook for professional builders and contractors rehabbing flooded single-family houses. Homes flood for a variety of reasons (overflowing rivers, high coastal waves, hurricanes, etc.) but the methods for determining how badly the building has been damaged and how to repair it are relatively similar no matter where you are working. The emphasis in this guidebook is on safe practices and the most important activities in the rehab process. This guidebook is bilingual in English and Spanish.

The discussed veered into the related issue of moisture content and other treatments of wall studs, and how to minimize future mold and rot problems.

Several members of the EDEN/Flood CoP were together for an eXtension meeting this week and will be developing new materials based on these discussions.

Discussants not named above included Bev Maltsberger, Frank Wideman, Sherry Nelson, BJ Eavy and Bob Schultheise (all from Missouri), Shirley Niemeyer (NE), Becky Koch (ND), and Pat Skinner (LA), with Virginia Morgan (VA), Linda Fischer (IA) and Bill Hoffman (USDA-NIFA) monitoring.

Mosquito and Anthrax Problems

News item volunteered by Bev Maltsberger (MO) - disease vectors or Just vexing?

Flooding, mosquitoes and West Nile virus: What You Need to Know

News item volunteered by ML Peter (KS) - Flooding and Anthrax

K-State Veterinarian Encourages Livestock Producers to Watch for Signs of Anthrax After Flooding

and this NDSU Anthrax Fact Sheet (S Kenyon)

Collected for the 2011 Tornadoes and Floods

The resources below were featured in 2011 for areas recovering and rebuilding from the spring tornados and first wave of flood destruction along the Missouri, Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. Most have been added to the EDEN Catalog and may appear on other EDEN pages.

Storm Recovery Guide: A 32-page booklet with the combined content of about 30 fact sheets (Louisiana). Missouri also picked up Navigating the Post-Disaster Mortgage Issues (PDF) and Keeping Food and Water Safe Before, During and After a Disaster.
Exercising in the Heat: Includes tips for avoiding heat illness (Missouri)
Recovery after Disaster: Family Financial Toolkit: discusses strategies and provides tools that can help you move along the road towards financial recovery. (Minnesota)
Disaster Recovery Resource Fairs: A Disaster Recovery Resource Fair is a local, one-stop shop for disaster victims to access multiple assistance programs at one location. Holding Disaster Recovery Resource Fairs in the affected community can help reduce many barriers people may encounter as they attempt to access disaster assistance programs and services. (Minnesota)
Community Organizations Active in Disaster (COAD) Guidance Manual This document (PDF) was written to help all community organizations and individuals understand how collaborative efforts can prepare communities for disaster. The main goals of these collaborations are to help communities avoid some disasters and recover from other unavoidable disasters. (Indiana adapted from/with Missouri).
Rebuilding Resources: an extensive web site developed for recovery from mass devastation (Katrina and Rita in south Louisiana). From getting started (recovery, getting your finances in order, thinking about what you want to do), to building codes and permits, and hazard-resistance, energy efficiency and indoor air quality in designing, rebuilding and repairing homes. Connects with the Louisiana House Resource Center and Family Resource Management, Food and Nutrition, engineering, pest control and lawn and landscape programs.

EDEN has two preparedness courses that could be useful in this pre-melt period:

Family Preparedness: An instructor-lead program Extension educators and others can use to teach families and individuals how to make family disaster kits, develop a family disaster plan, and be informed about and prepared for various disasters.

Ready Business: Developing a Business Continuity and Disaster Preparedness Plan for Your Business. Designed for land-grant university specialists, Cooperative Extension Service educators/agents, business leaders and others to teach small- and medium-sized business owners and managers how to prepare for disasters

For farm and agribusiness prepardness, check out the Purdue publication:

Plan Today for Tomorrow's Flood: A Flood Response Plan for Agricultural Retailers provides information about planning for a flood. http://www.btny.purdue.edu/Pubs/PPP/PPP-87.pdf

An online version of the magnet that accompanies this publication is available at http://www.btny.purdue.edu/Pubs/PPP/PPP-88.pdf

First Steps to Flood Recovery (Purdue Extension)

Talking About Disaster: Guide for Standard Messages - Floods/Flash Floods (Red Cross)

Hearing Impaired: Flood Cleanup Information - The modules are presented via video in international sign language and cover - from the Texas Department of Public Safety.

Dangers after a Flood
Tips about Food after a Flood
Wounds and Floodwater
General Flood Cleanup

Mold - EDEN Topic Page - Provides information and resources on the prevention, cleanup, and health effects of mold.

For a detailed look at reducing damage to homes exposed to shallow flooding (less than 3 feet), take a look at this collection provided by the LSU AgCenter:

Preventing Flood Damage: Information includes performance-level fact sheets and over and over 80 minutes of videos on permanent and temporary measures that can prevent or reduce damage from rising water. Note that the information is developed for Louisiana climate, soil conditions and typical flood characteristics, and thus may not be transferable directly to other states. However the basic principles involved would apply.

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Resource Tags

Published or Revised:11/26/2017

Author(s): Pat Skinner

This resource funded by: United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), Food and Agriculture Defense Initiative (FADI)

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Floods and Flooding - Archived EDEN Topic Page