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Flood Damage and Electrical Safety
1st October 2007
During the severe and unexpected flooding that occurred across wide areas of the UK in June and July, the Electrical Safety Council was able to offer essential electrical safety information and advice for the thousands of homes and other premises affected. According to press reports, about 30,000 homes and 7,000 businesses were affected. Many thousands more were flooded in July.
Water and electricity can be a lethal combination. It is therefore important for all those affected by flooding to be aware of the potential dangers so that they can take appropriate precautions when dealing with the electrics in flood damaged property, to help ensure their own and their family’s safety.
The advice, in the form of a press release, was extracted from a new leaflet we were drafting at the time, which was intended for publication later in the year. As a result of the widespread summer flooding, however, the leaflet was completed and published as a top priority.
The leaflet, which is supported by the Chief Fire Officers’ Association (CFOA), is concerned primarily with the potential dangers associated with electrical installations and appliances affected by water, but it also contains other useful practical advice for flood victims.
The advice given in the leaflet includes:
- Making sure the property is safe before entering
- Having a torch at hand when entering the property – and not attempting to switch on the lights or use candles
- Switching off the electricity supply at the consumer unit (fuse box)
- Arranging for other services such as gas to be turned off and advising that these services should remain off until advised by the providers that it is safe to turn them back on
- Contacting their insurance company (and landlord, if applicable) to tell them what has happened, and to get advice and take instruction
- Seeking professional advice about the restoration of the property, before clean up commences
- Not attempting any electrical repairs or connection of temporary supplies themselves
- Using a registered electrician to assess the condition and safety of the electrical installation and of any fixed and portable electrical appliances affected by the flood, before they are put back into service.
If the water damage to the fixed wiring is relatively minor, it is possible, once the wiring has dried out, that an electrician will just need to replace the water-affected electrical accessories such as socket-outlets and switches.
However, if there is major flood damage, the affected parts of the property may need to be rewired. Where this is necessary, householders should ask their electrician about the possibility of raising the height of all the previously-affected equipment including the wiring, socket-outlets and, in some instances the consumer unit (fuse box), to minimize the effect any further flooding may have on the electrics.
We have received a number of requests for copies of the leaflet, including one from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) for use in an awareness campaign it is running from October, aimed at school children throughout Scotland.
Copies of the leaflet can be downloaded from here.
Alternatively, printed copies can be obtained by sending an email request to leaflets@esc.org.uk or by phoning us on 0870 040 0561.
