Did you know that a staggering 6 out of 10 people who live in flood risk areas across the country do not believe their homes could flood? The Environment Agency are running their annual flood action campaign (Prepare. Act. Survive). The Flood Action campaign launches on 22 November 2021, which is the start of Flood Action week. This year the Flood Action campaign will run until March and is focused on helping people know what action they can take in a flood, to protect themselves, their families, properties or businesses.
Find out if you are at risk
You can find out if your property or where you live is at risk from flooding by visiting the Check the long term flood risk for an area in England – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) webpage. Flooding does not only impact homes and businesses but can do damage to property such as cars. Just one egg cup of water can damage a car engine and just 30cm of water can move a car. Flooding of roads and pavements can also have an impact on how people carry out their daily lives, such as getting to school, work or the shops.
Sign up for flood warnings
In many flood risk areas, you can sign up for flood warnings. These warn of the risk of flooding from rivers, the sea and groundwater. Areas at risk of flooding from the River Thames and River Kennet in Reading are covered by the flood warning service. Signing up to receive these warnings is quick and easy to do and it’s free!. You can be alerted by phone, email or text when flooding is expected.
What can you do to prepare for flooding
If your home or business is at risk of flooding there are some simple steps to reduce the impact of flooding and help to keep your home and possessions as safe as possible. You can see what actions you can take to protect yourself and property by visiting the plan ahead for flooding webpage and download the ‘Prepare. Act. Survive.’ simple flood plan (pdf).
Follow the Environment Agency on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and look out for posts this week and over the weekend to mark Flood Action Week. Like and share them if you can.
Posted written by Mel Ward from the Water Theme.
