“On June 25 and 26, 6.5 inches of rain fell over 12 hours in Metro Detroit overwhelming infrastructure and causing freeways to close and residents to dump waterlogged basement belongings on their curbs”.
This will be a new reality for more and more communities as time goes on, and as the intensity of rainstorms and the effects of urbanization combine to affect people in their homes. Homeowners are learning that they need to become more proactive in protecting their homes, and their valuables and belongings inside their homes. And municipal governments are learning the same lesson, and are waking up to help those communities that are most affected by providing programs that can prevent such flooding from occurring.
“I have insurance” was the common retort of homeowners when asked what they are doing to prevent flood in their homes. “It’s not my job to do that”, was another, “it’s the municipalities job”. Missed, in either of these replies was the fact that sewer backup floods are preventable, and if homeowners are going to rely exclusively on others to care for their homes, then the new flood reality for them will be quite painful.
Why wait to get flooded and experience the pain and anguish of a flood, when focussing on prevention is a much better alternative? Insurance may help you recover, but surely preventing the pain is a better alternative. Insurance is a necessary evil, but it is a last resort, not a first line of defence. And, as times go by, the more insurance claims there are, the more aggressive insurance companies will likely become in limiting payouts. And if you have claimed more than once, it is not inconceivable that insurance companies could refuse you insurance totally – and without insurance you may even lose your home.
Municipal grants, like the one that Detroit is offering, provide a helping hand to starting a defence against sewer backup floods. Lots of municipalities have such programs, but they are not always well publicized. So, call them or search the website of your local municipal government and find out what they have to offer. Here are a few examples in Canada: Toronto, Peel Region, Halton Region, Hamilton, Vaughan, Richmond Hill, Markham, and Ottawa.
In addition call backwatersolutions.com in Canada and we can help you set a course of prevention with our 8-point inspection that can help you take care of the most important flood prevention aspects of your home. It’s not only backwater valves that can help prevent floods in your home.
As an organization that is positioned to help homeowners prevent flooding, especially sewer backup flooding, Backwater Solutions undertakes inspections of the homeowner’s property and identifies areas of weakness, however if addressed will reduce the risk of both overland and sewer backup floods. While catastrophic overland flooding cannot be prevented, many other floods do occur, and homeowners need not feel they are helpless to protect themselves. We have experts that can help advise and make changes in homes that make them safer from flooding. All it requires is the willingness and a determination to take charge of one’s own home. To read how we do that, click here.
