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Flood Damage Vs Water Damage: Ft. Lauderdale
12/10/2018 (Permalink)
Flood Damage and Water Damage are different - FEMA
The difference between a water damage and a flood damage is best distinguished by the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) flood definition.
Simply put, the main difference between a flood claim and a water damage claim is where the water comes from. With flood damage, the water comes from a natural source and two or more properties are involved (if you reside in a generally residential versus rural area).
If you and your neighbors are all having water issues due to heavy rains and/or rising waters, then you are likely dealing with a flood damage. For water damage, you may have the water damage issue inside your home, but your neighbor may not. Either source is still a problem of course.
Flood Damage
A flood is defined as a general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of two or more acres and two or more properties of normally dry land. Flood damage can only be caused by:
- Overflow of inland or tidal waters
- Unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source
- Mudflow
- Collapse of land along the shore of a lake or similar body of water as a result of erosion or undermining caused by waves or currents of water exceeding anticipated cyclical levels that result in a flood as defined above
If the water causing damage in your home is coming from any of these sources, you are probably dealing with flood damage. Click here to see some tips to prevent water damage in the future. Thanks for reading!
No matter what it is considered, call a professional restoration company like SERVPRO to cleanup!
Give us a call at (954) 733-1006 or visit our website at http://www.SERVPROftlauderdalenorth.com/