Snowmelt Flooding: What You Need to Know

2/4/2022 (Permalink)

Flooding from snowmelt is most likely when the soil is already highly saturated prior to the snow event.

This winter has already dumped a fair amount of snow onto Hunt Valley, Harford County, and the greater Baltimore area. All the while, there will surely be more snow in store for us before the season’s end, which means that we must be prepared for the possibility of flooding from snow melt. Flooding can cause significant water damage, which can be expensive, risk devastation to your home or business and its contents, and cause a host of other issues, including mold growth and structural problems. In order to most effectively protect your home or business, it is critical to understand what flooding specifically resulting from snow melt entails and how to best prepare.

What is a Snowmelt Flood? 

According to Weather.gov, “A flood is considered a snowmelt flood when melting snow is a major source of the water involved.” They go on to explain that whereas rain immediately soaks into soil upon impact, moisture from snowfall takes longer to make its way into the soil, as it must first melt back into water. Once melted, this water either saturates the ground or it accumulates above ground as runoff, with the latter of which resulting in flooding. Flooding from snowmelt is most likely when the soil is already highly saturated prior to the snow event, perhaps due to frozen ground, heavy rain, or snowfall in the days preceding the storm or during the melting period, which leaves little room for water to melt into the ground, resulting in increased runoff. This type of flooding is not rare either, as it occurs yearly in the U.S. As a matter of fact, Weather.gov shares that “eight of the most significant floods of the 20th century (in terms of area affected, property damage, and deaths) were related to snowmelt.”

How Should You Prepare?

First thing’s first- move that snow! Be sure to remove any snow from your roof and shovel snow at least 4-6 ft away from the perimeter of your property as best you can when it is safe to do so. Inside, you can proactively prepare for flooding by moving valuables away from the ground. It may be beneficial to store important items in water-tight containers or move valuable items out of the basement entirely, opting to store them on higher levels of your property that are less vulnerable to flooding. At the very least, the best step that you can take is creating an emergency plan that can be implemented in the event of a flood. It all starts with a phone call to SERVPRO Disaster Recovery Team - Team Wall.

Experiencing Snowmelt Flooding? Call SERVPRO

Flooding is rare and therefore, it often comes as a shock. In the event of an emergency, take comfort in knowing that SERVPRO Disaster Recovery Team - Team Wall is always ready to help no matter the time of year, the size of the flood, or even the time of day. We offer Water Damage Restoration Services, both residential and commercial, as a part of our 24-Hour Emergency Service. Call your local SERVPRO Team Wall office, SERVPRO of Hunt Valley and Harford County, at (410) 229-0012 and trust our water damage restoration experts to make your property’s water damage “Like it never even happened.” Check out our website for more information about our Water Damage Restoration Process and the ways in which we commit ourselves to properly caring for your water damaged belongings.