Flooding is one of Brevard's most frequent hazards.
What is your Community's flood risk?
There are different reasons a community may flood; storm surge, river flooding or heavy rainfall. Low-lying or poorly drained areas can also increase a community's flood risk. To protect yourself, learn what flood threats affect your community.
- Determine if there are rivers or creeks that flood frequently.
- Is your home located in a low-lying area?
- Determine your home's elevation.
Due to the relatively flat terrain across Florida, it is complicated to drain accumulated water. When rivers rise, water tends to spread out far from riverbanks. In the case of the 1997-98 El Niño floods, rising rivers and repeated periods of heavy rainfall combined to pool water over land miles away from rivers. In fact, normally small rivers turned into vast lakes.
Pooling of water poses a significant risk, not as much from swift moving water, but more from one’s inability to judge water depth. Water only inches deep can be next to water that is several feet deep.
- Determine whether you live in a potential flood zone.
- Keep abreast of road conditions through the news media. Move to a safe area before access is cut off by flood water.
- Develop a flood emergency action plan.
- Have FLOOD INSURANCE. Flood damage is not usually covered by homeowners insurance. Do not make assumptions. Check your policy.
The National Flood Insurance Program
The National Flood Insurance Program, is a pre-disaster flood mitigation and insurance protection program. The National Flood Insurance Program makes federally backed flood insurance available to residents and business owners
National Flood Insurance Program call 1-888-CALL-FLOOD ext. 445, TDD# 1-800-427-5593.
- Purchase and use a NOAA Weather Radio.
- Inquire if your Community is StormReady. Brevard County is a storm ready community and includes all the municipalities within the county.
Flood Statistics
- As little as one foot of (moving) water can move most cars off the road.
- Just six inches of fast-moving flood water can sweep a person off his or her feet.
- Most flood-related deaths occur at night and are vehicular.
- Urban and small stream flash floods often occur in less than one hour.
- Tropical cyclones pose significant risk well inland due to fresh water flooding.
Click here for more information on Floods.