Preparing for Floods
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Introduction
Floods count among the most invasive and unpredictable of natural disasters, often lasting well beyond the weather event that induced them and preventing access and mitigation for considerable periods of time. Although preparation is unlikely to put a halt to flooding, it may vastly reduce the extent to which property is damaged and contribute to a faster recovery. This document is a compilation of flood preparation resources.
The most critical resources relating to this topic are marked below with a check.
Critical Organizations
General Flooding Resources
- Protect Your Property: Floods (FEMA). A series of resources on protecting your home from flooding.
- Flood Damage Assessment (section 4.4) (Minnesota SHPO). Minnesota's Thinking About the Unthinkable: A Disaster Plan For Historic Properties in Minnesota talks about determining past flood levels and creating basement level water flow-through channels in below-ground areas.
- Water-Resistant Design and Construction: An Illustrated Guide to Preventing Water Intrusion, Condensation, and Mold (McGraw Hill 2007, 286 pages). An in-depth guide to preparing your home to withstand water intrusion threats from floods, hurricanes, and severe storms.
- Disaster Planning for Florida's Historic Resources (1000 Friends of Florida/Florida SHPO).
- Treatment of Flood-Damaged Older and Historic Buildings (National Trust for Historic Preservation)
- Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Flood Recovery And Reinvestment Plan (March 3, 2009). Cedar Rapids produced this plan after the historic 2008 floods that damaged much of the city.
- Preparing To Preserve: An Action Plan to Integrate Historic Preservation Into Tribal, State, and Local Emergency Management Plans (Heritage Preservation).
- Preparing to Preserve: Emergency Planning Model Checklist for Historic Preservation (Heritage Preservation) is a handy checklist for your community.
- Elevating Historic Properties: Grant Application Guide, Historic Preservation Commission Guide, Grant Recipient Guide to Lower-Impact Construction, Elevation Design Guidelines (Mississippi Development Authority). Though specific to policy in Mississippi, these four documents are a good starting point for individuals interested in elevating their historic property.
- Home Builder's Guide to Coastal Construction Technical Fact Sheet Series (FEMA) A series of 31 technical fact sheets detailing such things as Using a Flood Insurance Rate Map, Moisture Barrier Systems, Coastal Building Materials, and more.
- Floodplain Management Bulletin on Historic Structures (FEMA)
- Building An Emergency Plan: A Guide for Museums and Other Cultural Institutions (Getty Conservation Institute). A guide to planning geared specifically to cultural institutions rather than physical built fabric. Features case studies and information for specific teams within an organization.
- Disaster Mitigation for Historic Structures: Protection Strategies (Florida SHPO/1000 Friends of Florida). A guide to help building owners understand which protection and mitigation strategies maybe appropriate for their property based on its specific characteristics.
