Click on the links below for other helpful information:
NSW SES
Know Your Risk
Prepare Your Home and Business
Look Out For Each Other
Australian Red Cross
Cleaning up after an emergency
Coping with a major personal crisis
How to talk to children about emergencies
Looking after yourself and your family
Helping children and young people cope with crisis
Department of Primary Industry
Livestock safety in disasters
CAUTION – UPON ENTERING FLOOD-AFFECTED AREA
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Before entering your house, wait until water has fallen below floor level.
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Wear rubber boots (or at least rubber-soled shoes) and rubber or leather gloves.
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If you are going into an isolated area, notify the proper authorities.
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Check with electricity, gas and water authorities to determine whether supplies to your area have been interrupted and are safe to be turned on by you. If the water supply system has been flooded, you must assume it is contaminated.
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Indoors or out, under flooded or damaged conditions, treat every electrical item with the greatest respect. EVERY SOURCE OF ELECTRICITY CAN BE EXTREMELY DANGEROUS UNDER FLOOD CONDITI0NS.
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If travelling on foot through a flood zone, observe overhead electrical lines for broken wires or evidence of arcing. Avoid powerlines if possible. If you must cross them, cross under them only at mid-length between supporting poles.
HAZARDS ON ENTERING YOUR HOME
Move around slowly and carry a torch as you inspect for damage. Flooring and stairways need particular attention. Watch for loose floorboards, holes in the floor, protruding nails, and sagging ceiling areas that may be ready to fall. Wet plaster is heavy and dangerous; if loose, use a broomstick or any other long-handled device to break it down before doing any work. Take care, as a sagging ceiling may contain a surprising quantity of water. Do not smoke or use open flames, as escaping gas may have collected in pockets of the building. Also keep a look out for other flood "victims” such as snakes and spiders.
There is a very real risk of death within a flooded home containing energised wiring. Do not turn on any lights or appliances until a qualified electrician has checked the entire electrical distribution system. Every portion of your electrical system that has been covered with water or mud must checked by an electrician before it is used.
Drinking water
If there is any chance of flood contamination of your drinking water, drink only boiled or bottled water until the normal water supply has been declared safe by health authorities. Local water systems as well as private sources are subject to flood contamination, and health officers should certify water sources as fit for consumption.
Food
Discard all foods exposed to flood water except those in sealed (airtight) metal cans. Permanently mark the cans to keep their contents identifiable, remove paper labels, and wash the cans in soap and warm water. Then immerse in a solution of three quarters cup of household laundry bleach per five litres of water for two minutes to disinfect the outside of cans. Rinse immediately in clean water. Do not treat aluminium cans with bleach solution.
Hygiene
Wearing gloves, wash out mud, dirt, and debris from your home as soon as you can at medium pressure. Use a hose and start from the top or upper limit of the flooding and work downward to the floor or basement. Wash surfaces that have been inundated with floodwaters in order to reduce the danger of flood-carried infections. Pay particular attention to surfaces that children can reach. Wash your hands thoroughly (with a disinfectant soap) after handling contaminated articles. To be on the safe side, consider all items exposed to floodwaters as contaminated.
CLEAN/SALVAGE – HOUSEHOLD ITEMS
Just because household items have been submerged in flood, does not mean they have to be discarded. Much can be salvaged.
Wait until your home and belongings have been thoroughly cleaned and dried before deciding whether to throw out. They may return to good condition or at least be repairable. Much can be salvaged if immediate restoration steps are taken.
Bedding
Mattresses soaked with floodwater generally are damaged beyond use and should be discarded. Feather and foam rubber pillows may be washed but those stuffed with kapok or cotton may not.
Clothing, household items and woollens
Clothing that has been submerged in floodwater does not necessarily have to be discarded. Allow clothing that is to be dry-cleaned to dry slowly at room temperature, away from direct heat. Shake, brush, or vacuum loose dirt from the articles before sending them to the cleaners. To clean washable woollen clothes and blankets, first shake and brush to remove dirt, then rinse repeatedly in lukewarm water to remove particles of soil lodged in fibres. Dry woollens in a warm place but not near a fire or in direct sunlight.
To clean mud-stained, washable clothing and household linens (other than woollens), first brush off any loose dirt, then remove as much mud as possible by rinsing repeatedly in cool water. Electric blankets should be dried on a clothesline and gently stretched into their original size and shape. They should NOT be used until safety tested by a qualified electrician.
Wash lightweight quilts in the same manner as woollens. Dry outdoors in the sun, if possible, to remove unpleasant odour. Thick comforters may need to be taken apart and the cover and filling each washed separately.
To further ensure sanitisation of washable articles, sanitise the washing machine occasionally to kill bacteria that live on the interior surface. Pour a disinfectant into the empty machine, then complete a 15-minute cycle at the hot water setting.
Floor coverings
You will have to make a decision regarding cleaning your rugs and wall-to-wall carpeting. If you leave the carpeting on the floor, you risk fostering wood decay, mildew, and warpage of the flooring by hindering its drying. However, if you remove the carpeting, you risk shrinkage. Although professional cleaners do have methods for controlling shrinkage, the chance of preventing it entirely for wall-to-wall carpeting is unlikely. If linoleum is broken, brittle, and cannot be salvaged, remove it with a chisel or hoe. Be sure to let the underfloor dry thoroughly before laying any type of floor covering.
Furniture
Promptly place pieces of wood or aluminium foil under furniture that has castors or metal caps on the legs to avoid staining carpeting. When weather permits, take all furniture outdoors, but keep it out of direct sunlight to prevent warping or fading. A garage or carport is a good place to work. Remove as many drawers, slides, or other moving parts as possible. If the furniture is made of wood, these will probably be jammed in position. Do not force drawers with a screwdriver or chisel. Remove the back of the furniture – cutting it out if necessary – and push out the drawers. If kitchen cabinet doors or drawers are stuck, do not force them open. Once they have dried they should be easier to open. Clean off all mud and silt from furniture items, using a hose if necessary.
To remove mildew from wood furniture, scrub with a mild alkali, such as four to six tablespoons of baking soda to five litres of water. Rinse well with clean water and allow to dry thoroughly. To remove mildew from upholstered furniture, first remove loose mould from outer coverings by brushing with a broom. Dry the article as quickly as possible with an electric heater, fan, or any convenient method to carry away moist air. Sun and air the article to stop the mould growth. If mildew remains on upholstered articles, sponge lightly with thick suds of soap or detergent and wipe with a clean, damp cloth. Use as little water on the fabric as possible to avoid soaking the padding.
Wood furniture that has not been submerged may have developed white spots or a whitish film or cloudiness from dampness. Try rubbing with a cloth wrung out of a mixture of half cup household ammonia and half cup water, turpentine, camphorated oil or oil of peppermint. Wipe dry at once and polish with wax or furniture polish. If colour is not restored, dip fine steel wool in oil (boiled linseed, mineral, or lemon) and rub lightly with the grain of the wood. Wipe with a soft cloth. Use a drop or two of ammonia on a damp cloth for deep spots; immediately rub dry with a soft cloth and then polish. If all efforts to remove white blemishes are ineffective, it may be necessary to refinish the furniture.
Refridgerators and freezers
Clean them thoroughly and disinfect inside. Don’t turn them on until they have been given the opportunity to dry out. Have them checked by an electrician first.
Hot water systems
A flooded hot water system should be repaired by an experienced repair person only. Controls can suffer hidden corrosion damage. They may operate adequately for a while, but cease to operate safely in the future. Testing seldom reveals future problems. Burners or electrical components should not be assembled or adjusted by the home owner/occupant.
REPAIR – FLOOD-DAMAGED BUILDINGS
The main considerations are to dry the building materials and furnishings out as soon possible, and to delay renovation and redecoration for as long as possible, at least until building components are substantially dry.
Drying involves: draining, flushing or pumping out mud and water from wall cavities, ducts, service pits and basements; ventilating as much as possible by keeping doors and windows open; taking up floor coverings and moving furniture away from walls; and ensuring good sub-floor ventilation by removing floorboards to assist in drying the floor and floor joists. Drying can also be assisted by the use of fans and heaters. Waterlogged insulation material should be removed. In the case of masonry houses, mud should be cleared from the wall cavities and ventilators.
Similarly, repainting and other repairs to cracked brickwork or concrete masonry are best left until the foundation soil has dried out and foundation movements have ceased. Doors and windows should not be replaned to make them fit their frames until the timber is back to its normal moisture content, which may take several weeks. One thing that should be done promptly is to oil locks and hinges to prevent them binding with rust.
It is highly likely that wet lining boards and some timbers will grow mould during the drying process. Remove it with hypochlorite bleach used in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations. Repeated applications may be necessary as the drying continues. Note that the bleach may affect the colour of some materials.