Have no doubt, suffering damage from a flood is a traumatic event that can quickly overwhelm most any individual. For many there are memories of rushing out of the house in knee deep water, racing the clock to get to high ground before they were swept away, while others had to be rescued by boat, wearing only the clothes on their backs as they watched their homes engulfed by the waters. And then, once the waters receded, we come back to these investments in time, money, and energy to find them mere shells of their former selves, containers of muck and mud, mold spores already growing, with the things that we loved trashed and damaged. Yes, a flood can sap the energy from our souls.
While there is no quick fix to recovering from a flood, understanding the process of recovery makes the recovery and rebuilding a little less overwhelming. Many folks are asking, “What do I do now?” The four phases to flood recovery offers one answer to that question, providing some direction for the future as we work together to cleanup, prepare, finance, and rebuild. This is certainly not the only path, but rather is one vision for answering the question above.
Phase 1
Cleanup
Phase 2
Preparation
Phase 3
Financing
Phase 4
Rebuilding
These phases are not necessarily a linear process for some of the financing issues will be happening in conjunction with the other steps, but participating in these four phases well help all affected by the flood begin the road to recovery.
