Flooding in Australia and in the US has devastated communities in 2022 and it’s been scary to watch. Countless homes have been inundated. Families left helpless and homeless. Lives lost. It’s clear we need to respond to rising flood risks. It’s also clear from the scale of the flooding that we can’t rely on the Government, the SES or Defence Force to help everyone in need. To survive floods we need to build individual resilience. And that starts with planning and preparedness – building a Flood Emergency Kit to get you to safety. In this post we help you do exactly that, together.
Why prepare a Flood Emergency kit?
Why go to the trouble of packing a Flood Emergency Kit?
Because floods are worsening, intensifying, spreading out, costing us more and even costing lives. Here are the critical points:
14 flooding trends you need to know about, to prepare
Global trends
- Increased Frequency: Predictions suggest more frequent flooding events due to changing weather patterns and climate change.
- Rising Sea Levels: As global temperatures rise, polar ice melt will contribute to rising sea levels, increasing the risk of coastal flooding.
- Intense Rainfall Events: Expect more short-duration, high-intensity rainfall events, leading to flash flooding, especially in urban areas.
- Urbanization Effects: As cities expand, the loss of natural water absorption areas and increased runoff from paved surfaces can exacerbate flooding.
- Infrastructure Challenges: Aging and inadequate infrastructure like levees and dams might struggle to cope with increased floodwaters, necessitating upgrades and new designs.
- Economic and Social Impacts: The frequency and intensity of floods can have profound economic consequences, affecting agriculture, infrastructure, and communities.
Australia:
- El Niño and La Niña Impact: The effects of these climate patterns will continue to influence Australia’s rainfall. La Niña is associated with wetter conditions and increased flood risks.
- River Basin Flooding: Major river systems, such as the Murray-Darling Basin, will continue to experience prolonged and more frequent flooding events.
- Tropical Cyclones: Northern regions, especially Queensland, may see more intense cyclones, leading to significant storm surges and coastal flooding.
- Loss of Natural Barriers: The degradation of wetlands, mangroves, and other natural barriers reduces the coast’s ability to buffer against floodwaters.
The U.S:
- Hurricane Intensity: The Atlantic hurricane season may see storms of greater intensity, resulting in stronger storm surges and more significant coastal flooding.
- Snowmelt Flooding: Northern regions might experience flooding due to rapid snowmelt, especially in areas like the Midwest and Northeast.
- River and Basin Flooding: Major river systems, such as the Mississippi, Missouri, and Ohio Rivers, could face prolonged and more frequent flooding events.
- Loss of Wetlands: The degradation of wetlands, especially along the Gulf Coast, reduces the natural buffer against storm surges and floodwaters.
Flooding can occur almost anywhere
During the first half of 2022, Brisbane, Gympie, Lismore, Sydney, the Northern Rivers, the Hunter Valley, and NSW Central Coast have all faced serious flooding. Some communities have been flooded back to back, 3 times.
According to the CSIRO, flooding in Australia is increasing with a warmer planet.
“We know that under a warmer climate, flood risk in general is likely to increase.
“Floods are the costliest natural disasters in Australia, averaging $8.8 billion per year.
Cascading societal impacts are evident in Queensland and NSW, such as deaths, injuries, mental stress, thousands of houses damaged, thousands of people evacuated, major infrastructure damage and service disruption, limited food and fuel, and contaminated drinking water.”
Dr Francis Chiew, Senior Hydrologist CSIRO.
Flooding is a major problem for communities in flood-prone areas. But some floods, like flash flooding and coastal surge, are also reaching parts of urban Australia not previously flooded.
Flooding in Australia comes from:
- rivers,
- lakes,
- the coast (storm surge, king tide).
- Intense rainfall. Most recently flash flooding has caused by short intense bursts of rainfall in our cities and suburbs. The truth is, flash flooding can occur almost anywhere.
Flooding is also our second most deadly natural hazard in Australia.
We are all impacted.
What are risks do you face in a flood?
What type of risk do you need to prepare for in a flood? Let’s take a look from first hand experience, at what can happen during a flood.
Flood waters can rise in minutes. They can move much faster than they appear to be on the surface. It can be difficult to escape contact with that water if your home is surrounded in a flood.
Not only does flooding in Australia damage homes and businesses, but it can also lead to health risks. Floodwaters contain harmful bacteria and pollutants that cause illnesses such as gastroenteritis.
When floods do occur, they can be incredibly destructive. A flood can devastate a community, leaving people stranded and without the basic necessities they need to survive. Access to properties and communities can be cut off and with it, supplies of food and medication.
Flooding can disrupt transport, and cut off power supply and water supply. For safety, electricity networks may disconnect your premises from the power grid. Your electricity may be out for several days in wide spread flooding.
Both the Brisbane and Sydney floods in 2022 led to calls for communities to conserve water. Water filtration systems can fail with too much debris, bringing the risk of drinking water contamination.
Severe flooding also comes with evacuation orders. Often, impacted communities have little time to pack up and get out safely.
These are all risks and dangers you can expect to face during flood emergencies. It’s important to be aware of the dangers and take steps to protect yourself and your family.
A Flood Emergency Kit is designed to help you navigate these risks and dangers. It can increase your chance of survival should the unexpected occur. It will also reduce mental stress and help you through the aftermath and recovery.
What should be in a flood emergency kit?
With our Flood Emergency Kit list below, you’ll have everything you need to prepare for and get through a flood and start rebuilding quickly afterwards.
In a flood, you may need to make a decision about whether you:
- Evacuate to a safe area, or
- Stay at home and face the flood.
Your Flood Emergency Kit should prepare you for both.
Evacuating a flood: get your Grab and Go bag sorted
When floodwaters are rising, every minute counts. You may have only a few minutes to get to safety, so it’s important to be prepared in advance.
An evacuation kit is the first thing you need to prepare for any emergency, including a flood.
Evacuation kits are also called Go Bags or Grab and Go bags. They are designed to last for several days (minimum 3). Their purpose is to help you get safely to an evacuation centre or or other place of shelter.
They’re perfect if you are faced with an evacuation order in a flood. Whats more, you can easily customise your Go Bag to make it the perfect Flood Emergency Kit.
What to pack in your grab and go bag
Your Grab and Go Gag (evacuation kit) is a generic emergency kit that includes the basics for human survival – water, food, warmth, light, communications.
A Grab and Go bag will not provide for temporary shelter, sleeping or basic sanitation. It doesn’t include toilet paper, blankets, tents or other necessities. This is because an Evacuation Centre will likely have these things prepared for you.
Here is a short list of Grab and Go Bag essentials:
- Drinking water
- Non perishable food
- Mini first aid kit
- Your wallet, bank cards, cash and spare house and car keys
- Your mobile phone and chargers
- Important documents like insurance policies, marriage certificates and emergency contact numbers
- battery powered radio with extra batteries
- A torch with spare batteries.
- spare clothes
- toiletries
- tools
If you want the full Go Bag Essentials Checklist in pdf you can download it for free.
The good thing about packing a generic Go Bag is that you can use it in any emergency. But it’s not designed specifically for floods.
There are some items you must add to to your Go Bag, to make it into a Flood Emergency Kit. Let’s look at these next.
How to pack your Flood Emergency kit
If you’ve already packed an emergency Go Bag, it’s just a matter of adding the flood specific items on the list below to your bag.
Some of the items in our Flood Emergency Kit you should pack inside your Go Bag. These are specific to flooding, and will help if you need to evacuate flood waters.
Other items in our flood kit – the ‘household essentials’ – you should keep at home. These will help if essential services like power and water are cut off in a flood. They will also help if you are stranded without access to food and medical supplies.
40 must have items in your Flood Emergency Kit
Prepare the following items for your flood emergency kit:
- Your Emergency Grab and Go Bag (using the list and links above)
Food and cooking
Whether you include food and cooking provisions is down to your circumstances. If you’re heading to an emergency evacuation centre, you may not need to bring all of your own food. If you’re just heading out of the flood zone to higher, dryer ground then pack your own food and cooking equipment.
- Camp stove
- Dehydrated/freeze dried meals
- Canned food and can opener
- Freeze dried rice, beans and vegetables
- Seasonings, salt and pepper
- Water for cooking
- Camp cook pot
- Eating utensils
- MREs (Meals ready to eat)
Medication
Your basic Go bag will have a paired back medical kit. Consider upgrading this for your flood emergency kit.
- Full first aid kit and manual
Warmth and sleep
- Lightweight water proof tarp
- Compact, lightweight tent
- Telescoping tarp poles
- Cordage
- Sleeping bags
Lighting
Your basic Go Bag will already have a torch, headlamp and batteries. Here are some additional items for flooding to light your way and attract attention if need be.
- Waterproof matches
- Candles
- Glow sticks
Tools and storage
For flooding, storage is all about keeping dry / keeping water out of your belongings.
- Zip ties
- Zip lock bags
- Bivy sack – to sleep in and keep bedding / backpack dry
- 1 meter length of rubber tubing
- Multi tool
- Whistle – to attract attention
- 40L or 50L backpack
Protection
- Gumboots
- Heavy duty large garbage gags
- High Visibility Reflective Vest
Household essentials
- Waterproof storage containers
- Waterproof bags
- Bucket with sealable lid
- Portable power generator – floods often come with power outages
- Esky – to keep food cool in a power outage
- Wrench or pliers
- Buckets – for the clean up to come!
- Mops, rags, towels – to clean up
- Portable pump – for homes on tank water
- Pump hose – for homes on tank water
- Sand bags, shovels, plastic sheeting – to build a temporary levy
Special items
Emergency kits are personal. They should always be custom to your individual needs, and those of your family. Think about your family make-up when you pack. You may need to include some special items like:
- provisions for pets – pet food
- food supply dietary needs – allergies, celiacs, vegans
- prescription medicines
- playing cards, toys, games or other comfort supplies for children
- aids for the elderly
You can download the full Flood Emergency Kit Checklist in pdf. It’s completely free.
Where to store your Flood Emergency Kit
A good place to store your Go Bag is in a cupboard by the front door. So you can literally grab it and get out quickly. You may store one large Go bag for the family, or have a smaller one for each family member.
The household essentials can be stored together, in a waterproof storage container, in the garage, shed or laundry. Somewhere that’s high and dry should flooding hit your property.
5 steps you can take today, to prepare for flooding
Here are 5 steps you can take today to be better prepared for flooding, according to authorities like the State Emergency Services, (Bureau of Meteorology and Queensland Government.
- Check your local flood maps – you’ll find these in local council or state government planning documents. Know your local risk. This includes if you are travelling.
- Know the local ‘Flood watch’ system and stay across flood warnings – plug into the Weather Bureau App weather warnings, subscribe to local government emergency warning messages, follow the local emergency services on social media.
- Have an emergency plan in place – it will help you sleep at night and survive if the time comes.
- Know your evacuation route – when Brisbane was hit with flash flooding we came to learn exactly which roads we could use to get home, and which would be flooded. Plan your route accordingly. Remember – ‘If it’s flooded, forget it’ or ‘Turn around, don’t drown’.
- Prepare your Flood Emergency Kit – start today and use this list to make it easy!
Conclusion
As floods increase and worsen, it’s important that we take steps to improve our own resilience. Doing so will increase our chance of survival, reduce our mental stress and strain, and help our recovery. That means being prepared to evacuate, or to ‘shelter in place’ and face flood waters head on. You can prepare by packing a Flood Emergency Kit. Use our list to make sure you have everything you need to get through a flood. We can all work together to build a more resilient future; one individual, one family, one community at a time.
FAQs
What are 5 items in an emergency kit?
5 items every emergency kit should have for human survival are:
– water – we can only survive 3 days without it
– clothing/space blanket – for warmth / protection from the elements-
– light – because we can’t do much without it
– food – non perishable food to sustain you until help arrives
– communication – to assist rescuers locate your position
What are 2 things an emergency kit should include?
The first 2 things in your emergency kit should be water and warmth/protection. In that order. These two items can help combat fast onset risks to your survival in an emergency.
Humans can only survive 3 days without water. Without food, we can live for more than 3 weeks. Dehydration can occur faster in hot climates like Australia. That’s why water is number 1 on our list.
Hypothermia or exposure to the elements (heatstroke in Australia) is also a lethal threat with fast onset. Warmth and protection from the elements is essential to maintain a safe body temperature until help arrives.
What is the most important thing in an emergency kit?
The most important item in your emergency kit, and the first item to pack, is water. Humans can only survive 3 days without water. Factor in 3 litres per person per day. Not only should you pack bottled water, you should also include water purification tablets in your emergency kit. That way, if you come across a source of fresh water you can safely replenish your drinking water supplies.
