Flood Awareness: Is your family ready?

Families were ready for the Memorial Day 2015. The National Weather Service had predicted rain and thunderstorms for the weekend.

Saturday morning opened up with sunshine and few clouds. Twenty-four hours later, the rivers were 30 feet over flood stage, homes floating away, and dozens of people lost.

It’s easy to think, “I don’t live near a river, so I don’t need to worry about a flood.” While many flash floods often occur in deserts and mountains, they can happen anytime and anywhere. Flash is the important word to remember: sudden flooding due to excessive rain or other causes.

Flood Awareness Week is held annually in the spring. If you think flooding isn’t a concern because you don’t live on a river, consider:

• Roadways can flood quickly.
• Water on the road can be deeper and swifter than it appears.
• Flooding isn’t isolated to rivers. Build up of water can begin a dangerous flow down hills and mountains.
• Your family can become isolated due to flooded roads.

Take some time today to check if you are ready for any flood danger. As part of being ready, you can teach your children about floods. A quick unit study for the week will set the stage. (Downloadable Flood Awareness Week Lesson)

• Define flood.
• Name the various types of floods and their cause.
• What is a 100-year flood?
• Look at this list of major floods. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_floods Pick one and learn more about it. Where was it? What conditions caused the flood?
• Prehistoric people used river and coastal floods to their advantage. How did they use these waters?
  The river Nile
  Ancient Irrigation Systems
  Water History
• Read about the Genesis Flood, Genesis 6 – 9.
• Review the research of the scientific evidence of the Genesis Flood.
• How are floods prevented?
• What is a flood zone? Do you live in a flood zone?
• What is a flood warning? A flood watch?

Download Family Flood Emergency Plan

Make a family plan and share with us.