How’s Your Flood Awareness This World Rivers Day?
While we celebrate our waterways on World Rivers Day it’s also a good time to raise flood awareness. Flooding is the most prevalent natural disaster worldwide and causes gallons of damage. With 17% of England’s properties at risk of flooding, and more chance of water entering your home than a burglar, you should know the dangers and have a flood damage clearance plan in place should the worst happen.
What about floods on World Rivers Day?
Introduced following the United Nations Water for Life Decade in 2005, World Rivers Day (25 September) not only emphasises the value rivers bring but also helps increase awareness of how we need to take care of our watercourses.
“Rivers are the arteries of our planet; they are lifelines in the truest sense.”
– Mark Angelo, Founder of World Rivers Day.
But, just as easily as they are our lifeblood, rivers pose myriad dangers – from pollution and disease to currents and flooding. Therefore, excellent flood awareness is key for every responsible homeowner, property developer and property manager.
Stats and info to sate your flood awareness
Is your flood awareness up to scratch? The most widespread natural disaster in the world, and the one that’s caused the most deaths and destruction in the US, floods are caused by an overflow of water engulfing land that’s usually dry.
World Health Organisation (WHO) describes the three most common types of floods as:
- Flash floods – caused by excessive rainfall that raises water levels quickly
- River floods – caused by steady rainfall or snow melt pushing a river over capacity
- Coastal floods – caused by storm surges linked to cyclones and tsunami
Though groundwater flooding, surface water flooding and sewer flooding are also problematic in the UK.
From 1998 to 2017, floods affected over 2 billion people globally and the devastation they caused included loss of life and property (WHO). What’s more, floods are on the rise owing to climate change and cause further environmental impacts such as erosion and habitat loss.
According to Environment Agency’s Flooding In England – A National Assessment of Flood Risk:
- One in six properties in England is at risk of flooding
- More than 5 million people live and work in 2.4 million properties that are at risk of flooding from rivers or the sea
- Around one million of these properties is also at risk of surface water flooding
- A further 2.8 million properties are susceptible to surface water flooding alone
Do you have a security system fitted? Your home’s more likely to get flooded than burgled so perhaps it’s time you thought about flooding prevention solutions and made a flood damage clearance plan… But flooding isn’t only a concern for homeowners, 40% of businesses fail to reopen when they suffer flood damage.
Safe and efficient flood damage clearances
As well as helping to improve your flood awareness, RJS Waste Management eases the stresses of water damage with efficient and safe emergency flood clearance services. We offer these to homeowners and business owners throughout the UK.
Should your property flood, our hazardous waste experts will act quickly to provide everything from flood water removal to flood-damaged waste disposal. When you need help getting back to normal, we can take care of your building repairs too. Get in touch to find out more or arrange a quote.
