New Jersey Flooding
Did you
know that anywhere you live in New
Jersey has a risk for flooding? You don’t need to
live near a river in order to be at risk of flooding. No matter where you live
from Camden, Newark,
Jackson, and Middletown
to Ocean and Egg Harbor,
the state of New Jersey
is at risk for flooding.
The New
Jersey Office of Emergency Management offers a variety of flood preparedness
and safety advice including tips for what to do before, during, and after a
flood. For example, the United States,
including New Jersey,
suffers numerous flood events regularly. Of the natural hazards the nation
faces, flooding is one of the most frequent causing large scale devastation,
hardship, and economic loss.
The
greatest flood risk in New Jersey
is in the state’s known floodplains after either prolonged or intense rainfall
occurs or ice and debris jams cause rivers or streams to overflow. In the
winter and spring, snow melt can also combine with rain further aggravating
flood conditions. In the summer, severe thunderstorms and tropical storms can
cause flooding in New Jersey.
Floods can
develop in an instant or take several days before becoming a problem. Swift-moving
rivers can sweep away people and cars while buildings and basements can become
swamped with water.
Flash floods
can occur with little or no warning and can be caused by a variety of factors
including heaving rainfall, dam bursts, levee failure, and surges of water
after an ice jam breaks apart. Flash floods and the rains that caused them can
also set off mud flows and mudslides as well as uproot trees, destroy buildings
and bridges, sweep away cars, people and boulders, and carve out new channels.
So, what’s
your New Jersey
flood risk? The first place to check is the FEMA Web site or FloodSmart.gov.
Simply enter your address and New Jersey
city and find out. The data returned will give you a relate risk rating such as
low-to-moderate flood risk or high flood risk. If you want more detailed flood
data, you can view the flood maps for your New Jersey community online.
The New
Jersey Office of Emergency Management has a list of all emergency management
coordinators and their corresponding Web sites listed on the NJOEM Web site.
Visit the county coordinator’s Web site for your New Jersey County
to learn more about the specific flood risks for your community. Each county Web
site is laid out a bit differently.
Another
resource is the National Weather Service Web site. Do a search for the Advanced
Hydrologic Prediction Service for your community. For example, if you live in Atlantic City, you can
view real time data detailing current flood predictions. You can also view
river observations, river forecasts, and precipitation data. You can drill down
to specific rivers and view their current levels in relation to flood stage
levels.
Flooding
is part of living in a coastal community; however, even cities and towns far
from the Jersey shoreline are at risk of
flooding. A flood can occur in an instant and it doesn’t take more than about
an inch of water to cause major damage to your home. If you have a basement,
flood waters can seep inside through the ground, even if the water level never
approaches ground level.
What if
your home is flooded? Prompt attention is required! The sooner you can dry out
your New Jersey
home the better. Once it is safe, you must act fast before further damage (such
as mold growth) can occur. Let Dryout help you in this regard. The Dryout
Network has water damage and restoration professionals available around the
clock in communities throughout New
Jersey.