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It doesn’t happen often, but when Los Angeles gets hit with a storm, it inevitably causes damage. Whether it’s the mudslide areas in Malibu along the PCH, or in the county’s other remote burned areas like Glendora, residents need to be on high alert. Even if you don’t live in a targeted danger zone, you should always flood-proof your home. The realty is that, when faced with strong winter storms, no one is immune from the effects of heavy rainfall. Water can and does flood the homes of many unsuspecting residents.
Will you be ready?
To ensure that your family and your belongings stay safe during heavy rain, check out these tips.
Protect your property
If you know a strong front is moving in, it’s a good idea to safeguard your home. Not only can flooding waters damage your belongings, they can pose a serious threat to your safety. Obviously, water doesn’t play nice with electricity, so make sure that you raise your electrical components such as switches, sockets and wiring about a foot above your home’s estimated flood elevation.
Next you’ll want to address your appliances. We probably don’t need to tell you that exposure to excess water cause potentially irreparable damage. To avoid a catastrophe, elevate the water heater, washing machine and dryer at least a foot above the estimated flood zone using cement blocks. If you need help or want to confirm the safety of such movement, call the best plumber in Beverly Hills. Morningside’s team of experts will make sure you correctly move the appliances without hurting yourself.
Get sandbags
The silver lining (if you can call it that) of preparing for possible floods is that you don’t have to foot the whole bill or find all of the appropriate resources yourself. The city of Los Angeles offers free sand bags to residents through designated fire stations. All you have to do is go pick them up. Sand bags can be an important tool in keeping water at bay, but you should take care to use them correctly. Fold the top of the bag under the bag, and position the fold uphill (or against the direction of running water). This will keep the bags from opening when water rushes by.
Additionally, if you’re manning the bag yourself, you only need to fill it about half way. Sand is ideal for filling, but if you don’t have immediate access to it, soil works as well.
Move to higher ground
If your home is truly in danger of flooding, you’ll most likely be contacted ahead of time by local authorities. In which case, shut off the power and gas to the home. You’ll greatly reduce the potential for an electrical fire or gas leak. In the event that a flood hits your residence and surprises you, move to higher ground as soon as you can. If going outside to higher elevation is safe, do so. But do not, under any circumstances, attempt to walk or drive through flooded areas.
