Fire Department - Emergency Management

Floods

What is a Flood?

Floods are the most common and widespread of all natural disasters. Most communities in the United States can experience some kind of flooding after spring rains, heavy thunderstorms, or winter snow thaws. Floods can be slow, or fast rising but generally develop over a period of days.

What is a Flash Flood?

Flash floods usually result from intense storms dropping large amounts of rain within a brief period. Flash floods occur with little or no warning and can reach full peak in only a few minutes.

Other Information & resources

Insurance: Estimate Flood Damages Based on Height of the Flood

FloodSmart.gov provides an interactive tool to estimate flood damages based on the height of the flood.  For example, if you enter the water level in the house as six inches, it equates the approximate dollar amount of damages.  It makes clear the benefit of flood insurance.

Estimate Flood Damages - FloodSmart.gov

Maps

• Chesapeake Storm Surge Map
  
  
• Chesapeake FIRM Flood Zones Map
  
Using a Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) - FEMA

Tide Gauges

• NOAA Ches Bay Bridge Tides Plot
• NOAA Money Point Tides Plot
• NOAA Sewells Point Tides Plot
  
  

References

Are you ready? Floods - FEMA
Flood and Flash Flood - American Red Cross
Floods - Fast Facts