Are you prepared? Flood season comes to Calgary

Calgarians don’t want to hear it but it is flood season again.

Odds are the city will not see a massive event like 2013, but a few people will likely have to deal with some kind of flooding, which is why it’s important to be prepared.

It’s a good idea to make sure the basement is waterproof, especially if expensive memorabilia, big screen TVs and pool tables are stored.

FirstOnSite’s Prairie Region Director of Operations Jamie Mackie suggested filling in any cracks in the foundation and putting weather protection sealant around windows and ground-level doors.

“Also making sure you don’t have big piles of snow near any exterior walls, if you can move them or shovel them away,” he said.

Raise large appliances off the basement floor onto wood or cement blocks, and anchor furnaces, water heaters and or oil tanks to the floor so they don’t float away or tip over in a flood.

If you have a sump pump, make sure it’s working and has a battery back-up.

Even though the roof is not at ground level, Mackie added it’s not a bad idea to try and safely knock any excess snow off of it, as well.

“In spring and fall, always check your gutters and make sure you clean those out, everything like that will really help you prevent some of these things that can happen,” he said.

Most standard residential insurance policies do not cover overland flooding, so it’s best to give your broker a call and make sure you’re clear about what your coverage is.

Floods have now become the costliest type of property damage in the country: one in five Canadian households is at a high risk of flooding, and in 2017, floods caused over $590 million in insured damage alone.

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