Get Ready for Flood Safety Awareness Week - March 14-18, 2011

Flooding is a coast to coast threat to the United States and its territories in all months of the year. National Flood Safety Awareness Week, from March 14 to 18 this year, is intended to highlight some of the many ways floods can occur, the hazards associated with floods, and what you can do to save life and property.

You can prepare yourself and help prepare your communities by educating yourself on the risks of flooding and the ways you can prepare and respond to flooding. Here are some resources to get you started: The Ready Campaign has a page dedicated to flood safety awareness at www.ready.gov/floodawareness.

FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program has a variety of resources at www.floodsmart.gov/floodsmart/. Also, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has a Flood Safety page at www.floodsafety.noaa.gov. The DHS Center for Faith Based & Neighborhood Partnerships will hold a National Flood Awareness Safety Week Stakeholder conference call, Tuesday, March 15 from 12-1PM EST that will provide additional information on what it means to get ready for flood season. There is a limit of 300 people on the call.

Call-in information is: 1-888-391-6569 Pin # 8622712.

Find out more about being a StormReady community at http://www.stormready.noaa.gov/.

90% of natural disaster in the US are floods

The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration launched an educational campaign this week to teach Americans about the dangers of flooding, the nation's most common natural disaster.

Officials say many people disregard the risk of flooding because they don't live near a river or other body of water, but 25% of flood insurance claims come from outside of high-risk areas.

Officials also are trying to eradicate the myth that only property owners need flood insurance because renters also often lose valuable property in floods.

More info at www.floodsmart.gov