In the early evening of July 31, 1976, rain began to fall near Drake, Colorado. The thunderhead stalled and rapidly grew to over 50,000 feet. The initial gentle rainfall that had started near sunset quickly turned into a torrential downpour, releasing 12 inches of water in just four hours.
A canyon through the area is home to the Big Thompson River. Normally 200 cubic feet of water per second flows through the canyon. With the huge rainstorm that summer, 31,000 cubic feet per second rushed through the narrow canyon walls. The resulting flash flood was devasting. It killed 144 people, making it the deadliest flash flood in Colorado’s history. It also destroyed over 400 homes and business and caused devastating damage to the area’s infrastructure, including power lines, roads, and bridges.
Just three years later, in August of 1979, monsoon rains in India were intensifying. Rainfall began to increase the flow of the Machhu River near Gujarat, India. This river had been dammed in two places years earlier to provide irrigation water to the surrounding area. As the water rose, dam operators opened the dam gates to prevent overtopping. Despite their best efforts, the water overtopped the earth-fill dam, eventually causing the Machhu Dam II to fail completely. Within 20 minutes, flood waters up to 30 feet high inundated the downstream low-lying areas.
Although warnings had been sent out by officials, most people in the downstream town of Morbi had ignored them. The flash flood inundated the area, destroying thousands of buildings and drowning livestock. The human toll was enormous. Officials were unable to accurately count the number of fatalities, but it is estimated that between 5,000 and 10,000 people lost their lives in the flash flood. The Machhu dam failure is considered the worst flash flood in recorded modern history.
Read on to learn how to prepare for a flash flood to keep you and your family safe during these extreme events.
What exactly is a flash flood? The National Weather Service defines a flash flood as flooding that begins within three to six hours of heavy rainfall. There are also other causes of flash floods, including dam failures, levee breaks, or mudslides displacing water. While it may take hours for the peak of the flash flood to develop, in the affected areas, water can rise rapidly, often in just minutes.
Terrain contributes to the possibility of flash floods developing. Narrow canyons, rock layers under soil, and hilly terrain can lead to deadly flash floods. In arid regions, even dry creek beds can suddenly turn into a raging river when heavy rain falls rapidly upstream. Urban areas provide lots of hard surfaces where floods can develop, as paved roads prevent rain water from soaking into the ground. “After heavy rains, they can rip through riverbeds or urban streets, really just destroying everything that the waters encounter,” says Ed Clark, director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Water Center.
More people die from drowning in floods than from any other natural disaster causes. Flash floods kill an average of 88 people in the United States each year. Nearly half of all flash flood fatalities happen in vehicles, revealing the hazards of trying to drive through a flooded road. And it doesn’t take feet of water to be dangerous. “If the water is high enough to where it touches your exhaust pipe, it’s already too deep,” says David Nguyen, owner of a car repair business in Dallas. Elliott Reep, emergency management coordinator explains, “Six inches of water can move a person, 12 inches of water can start to affect a vehicle, and two feet of moving water can wash it away.”
The best-case scenario for how to prepare for a flash flood is when you receive notice ahead of time and have time to evacuate. Severe weather alerts from the National Weather Service typically are issued in both English and Spanish. Just as with other weather alerts, flash flood notifications come in two types—a watch and a warning.
A flash flood watch means that conditions exist that could result in a flash flood. It does not mean that flooding is occurring, but is does indicate that rapid flooding is possible. When a flash flood watch is issued, you should closely monitor your local emergency alert system and your local news until the threat has ended.
The next step up is a flash flood warning. A warning means that a flash flood is occurring in your area. When a watch is issued, you should be prepared to move to higher ground. A warning means that you should evacuate immediately. As flash floods move very rapidly, you should not delay acting on an evacuation order.
Keep you and your family safe with these steps on how to prepare for a flash flood:
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) maintains a detailed database of the flood risks for every location in the United States. When you visit the FEMA Flood Map Service Center, you can enter your address to assess your risk of flooding. Check your home address, your work location, and other places you visit frequently.
Be prepared to evacuate in the event of flooding in your area. Before the need arises, set up an evacuation plan. Decide who will be responsible for helping your children and rounding up your pets. Figure out ahead of time what you will grab as you leave for higher ground. Include a strategy for communication if you and your family become separated and where you will meet up. The American Red Cross offers some planning templates and tips to help you and your family prepare for an evacuation.
Flash floods are by nature fast-moving. When a flash flood warning is issued, you won’t have time to do much more than evacuate. Keep a bug-out bag in your home or car that you can grab if you have to evacuate in a hurry. Include a phone charger, change of clothing, flashlight, some non-perishable food, baby care items, personal hygiene supplies, and water bottles. On your way out, grab a plastic zip-top bag and into it put your important identification documents, medications, credit cards, and some cash. The most important thing to do is to get out as soon as you get an evacuation order.
Getting away from the flooding area is crucial. If a flash flood warning is issued, evacuate immediately. Listen to your local alerting systems for information about evacuation routes, flooded areas, and other instructions. If you are trapped in a building due to rising waters, move to the highest level you can. Only get on the roof if necessary. You should not stay in an enclosed attic if flood waters rise to that level, as you can become trapped.
When evacuating from a flooding area, avoid low spots, ditches, and dips in the terrain. Do not attempt to cross a flooding stream or creek, as the water can rise in just a few minutes, trapping you. Many motorists each year are killed in cars during floods. It is not always possible to judge how deep the water is on a road. Water can get into your exhaust or the intake to your engine, locking up the motor and stalling your vehicle. If your vehicle stalls, leave it if possible and seek higher ground. If you encounter a flooded roadway, heed the advice of the National Weather Service: Turn around, don’t drown!
Listen to local authorities to learn when it is safe for you to return home. Do not drive around barriers, as you may enter a flooded area without realizing it. This is especially important at night, when you’re not able to see a flooded roadway until it is too late. If there is water in your home, do not enter until you’ve eliminated the risk of electrocution. Never touch any electrical equipment if there is standing water. You should wait until the electricity is turned off before entering any flooded area.
If you do get stuck in flood waters, your first action should be to try to get to higher ground to avoid getting trapped in the rising water. But drowning is not the only risk you’ll encounter. Flood waters can contain dangerous debris, harmful chemicals, spilled raw sewage, and threatening animals such as bats, snakes, or rodents. If the flood waters are the result of a storm with high winds, there may also be downed power lines.
When returning home, you should assess your home’s structural integrity and the foundation. Flooding can damage a home’s foundation, crack floors, damage staircases, and destabilize ceilings. Surprisingly, fire is also a significant risk after a flood due to broken gas lines or electrical damage.
Needless to say, you will have a hefty cleanup project ahead of you. Flood damage can be extensive, often requiring major overhauls to fix. One way you can be prepared for the flood's aftermath is looking into dumpster rentals or contracting services who keep dumpsters on hand. Its always good to stay ahead and get the cleanups started as soon as possible.
Finally, even before a flood occurs, you should protect your home by getting flood insurance. If you are in a FEMA high-risk flood zone and have a federally backed mortgage, you are required to purchase flood insurance as a condition of the loan. Flood insurance can be purchased through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). You should consider purchasing this type of insurance even if you are not in a high-risk zone. Most places in the United States have some level of flood risk, due to storms, near-by construction disruption, broken water mains, or damaged drainage systems. Because homeowners and renters insurance do not cover damage due to floods, you will only be financially protected through flood insurance.
Many people believe that their risk from flooding is minimal, especially if they have never experienced a flood in their area before. But flash flooding can occur at any location when the conditions are right. Taking the steps to prepare for evacuation from flash flooding may seem like a hassle, but it is crucial to ensuring that you and your loved ones are safe if it happens to your community.
The American Red Cross chief medical officer Dr. David Markenson warns, “The human-nature side is obviously not to worry, and many people think it’s not going to happen to me. But you never want to be in a position where you’re looking back, or others are looking back, and saying: ‘Why didn’t you just heed simple advice?’” Planning for and reacting quickly when you are faced with a flash flood will help you and your family survive.
Discount Dumpster offers an array of sizes for any kind of cleanup project. Flooding damage can be extensive and can require lengthy work to fix and cleanup. If your home or property has been damaged by flooding, reserve a 20 or 30 yard bin for maximum cleanup efficiency.
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