[PBARC] Send this to anyone you care about. Flash Flood Danger

[E. Glenn Wolf, Jr.]

	TURN AROUND DON'T DROWN®


	Each year, more deaths occur due to flooding than from any other
thunderstorm related hazard. Why? The main reason is people underestimate
the force and power of water. Many of the deaths occur in automobiles as
they are swept downstream. Of these drownings, many are preventable, but too
many people continue to drive around the barriers that warn you the road is
flooded.
	
	Whether you are driving or walking, if you come to a flooded road,
Turn Around Don't Drown You will not know the depth of the water nor will
you know the condition of the road under the water.


	Flash flooding is the rapid flooding of low-lying areas, rivers
<http://www.wordiq.com/definition/River>  and creeks
<http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Creek_(waterway)>  that is caused by the
intense rainfall associated with a thunderstorm
<http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Thunderstorm> , or multiple training
<http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Training>  thunderstorms. Flash flooding
occurs when the ground under a storm becomes saturated with water
<http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Water>  so quickly that it cannot be
absorbed. The runoff collects in low lying areas and flows rapidly downhill.
As a result, anything in its path is suddenly in rising water. These most
often occur in dry areas that have recently received precipitation
<http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Precipitation_(meteorology)> , but the
flash flood can flow for a long distance as long as there is a path
downhill.  Flash Flooding is the inability of the infrastructure or
environment to handle the amount of water present.

	Floodwaters can be extremely dangerous. The force of six inches of
swiftly moving water can knock people off their feet. The best protection
during a flood is to leave the area and go to shelter on higher ground.
Flash flood waters move at very fast speeds and can roll boulders, tear out
trees, destroy buildings, and obliterate bridges. Walls of water can reach
heights of 10 to 20 feet and generally are accompanied by a deadly cargo of
debris. The best response to any signs of flash flooding is to move
immediately and quickly to higher ground. 

	Cars can be easily be swept away in just 2 feet of moving water. 12
inches of moving water will float approximately 1500 pounds and float it
downstream.  Look at the weight of common passenger vehicles, they weigh
about 3,000 pounds.  Therefore, two feet of moving water can float away most
passenger vehicles.   If floodwaters rise around a car, it should be
abandoned. Passengers should climb to higher ground. Road beds may be washed
out under flood waters. NEVER drive through flooded roadways

	§         Flooding has caused the deaths of more than 10,000 people
since 1900. Property damage from flooding now totals over $1 billion each
year in the United States. 

	§         More than 2,200 lives were lost as a result of the
Johnstown, Pennsylvania flood of 1889. This flood was caused by an upstream
dam failure. 

	§         Nearly 9 of every 10 presidential disaster declarations
result from natural phenomena in which flooding was a major component. 

	§         On July 31, 1976, the Big Thompson River near Denver
overflowed after an extremely heavy storm. A wall of water 19 feet high
roared down the Big Thompson Canyon where many people were camping. 140
people perished and millions of dollars of property were lost.