Press release from the Environment Agency
There are 5.2 million homes and businesses in England at risk of flooding. Don’t assume it’s not you.
Whether you live on a hill, in a flat or in an area that’s never flooded before, flooding can still affect you, putting your home, your possessions and your family at risk. In England there are over 5 million properties at risk of flooding, but most people assume it’ll never happen to them. According to recent polling, only a third of people in areas at risk of flooding believe that their home could be at risk.
And with climate change already causing more frequent, intense flooding and sea level rise, we all need to know what to do, should the worst happen.
Knowing what to do in a flood could save your life.
According to the Environment Agency, the average cost of flooding to a home is around £30,000. Flooding also brings a significant risk to life. The mental health impacts of flooding can last for 2 years or more after flooding has happened. Depression, anxiety and PTSD can affect up to a third of people who have been flooded.
But, crucially, taking steps to prepare for flooding, and knowing what to do in a flood can significantly reduce the damages to a home and possessions (by around 40%), reduce risk to life, and reduce the likelihood of suffering from mental health impacts in the future.
Know how to Prepare. Act. Survive.
The good news is that there are some simple things you can do to prepare for flooding. Knowing what to do in a flood could help keep you and your family safe, and save you thousands of pounds in damages and disruption.
For more information and to find out if you are at risk visit the what to do in a flood page on GOV.UK to get prepared here.
Caroline Douglass, Director of Incident Management at the Environment Agency, said, “Flooding can cause serious disruption to people’s lives. We can’t prevent it, but we can help homeowners to be more flood resilient. Those who are aware of the risk and have done something about it are able to reduce damage to their homes and possessions considerably.”
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