Tropical storms and hurricanes pack a triple punch - high winds, soaking rain and flying debris. They can cause storm surges to coastal areas and bring heavy rainfall. This, in turn, causes flooding hundreds of miles inland. When hurricanes weaken into tropical storms, they produce rainfall and flooding that can be especially damaging since the rain collects in one place.

During the spring, frozen land prevents melting snow or rainfall from seeping into the ground. Each cubic foot of compacted snow contains gallons of water and once the snow melts, it can result in the overflow of streams, rivers and lakes. When spring storms occur, the result is often serious spring flooding.

Several areas of the country are at high risk of flooding due to heavy rains. This excessive amount of rainfall can happen throughout the year, putting your property at risk.

Levees are designed to protect against a certain level of flooding. However, levees can and do decay over time, making maintenance a serious challenge. Levees can also overflow, or even fail, during large floods, causing more damage than if the levee had not existed.

A flash flood is a rapid flooding of low-lying areas that happens in less than six hours, and is caused by intense rainfall from a thunderstorm or several thunderstorms. Flash floods can also occur from the collapse of a man-made structure or ice dam. Flash floods are the number one weather-related killer in the U.S. They can roll boulders, tear out trees, and destroy buildings and bridges.

Construction and development can destroy land's natural drainage and create brand new flood risks.  This is because new buildings, parking lots and roads mean less undeveloped land to absorb excess precipitation from heavy rains, hurricanes and tropical storms.

When building or modifying your home: