Staying Safe in Flood Water
More than 12% of the UK population live in areas at risk of flooding from rivers or the sea. Floodwater can be dangerous but there are a few simple things you can do to stay safe.
Flood Safety Tips
- Keep an eye on weather reports for flooding in your area. Do not travel in heavy rain unless absolutely necessary
- Do not ignore road closed signs
- Never attempt to cross or drive through floodwater if you don’t know how deep the water is. Just two feet of water will float a car
- Never try to swim through fast flowing water or floodwater – you may get swept away or be injured by an object in the water
- Don’t assume fords are safe to cross just because the road is not closed. Always look at the river level gauge and use your common sense
- Floodwater may be contaminated. Never allow children or pets to go near or play in floodwater
- Prepare a flood kit in case your home floods or you are trapped in a vehicle for any period. This should contain a change of clothing, wellies, waterproofs and blankets as well as a torch, charged mobile, medication and a first aid kit and a list of useful numbers, including flood alert lines
How to manage a car in flood water
- Call for help, remove your seatbelt and release any children from their seats
- Turn on all of the lights and sound the horn to attract attention (provided this won’t delay your escape)
- If the water level is low, open the windows and stay in the car
- If the water level is high or water is entering the car, escape out of the windows, sunroof or doors onto the roof of the car. If the car starts to move quickly with the water flow, get off of the car, stay upstream and swim vigorously to safety
