Why does flooding occur?
When a major storm hits, large volumes of water can fall in a relatively small area in a short period of time. This can overwhelm storm sewers and cause flooding and property damage.

Many factors can increase the risk of flooding, including blocked or broken pipes, poor lot grading, poor maintenance on one's property, and blocked inlets or sewer openings, which cause the excess water to flow to the next lowest location.

Flooding Dangers and What You Can Do To Be Safe
There are many ways to reduce the impacts of flooding and protect your family and property.

• Find out if you qualify for PWD’s Basement Protection Program to prevent sewage backup at your property.

• Avoid storing valuable possessions such as irreplaceable photo albums, artwork and important papers in your basement if it is prone to flooding. 

• During flooding events, dangerous and life-threatening hazards may exist so it is very important to recognize these dangers. For example, avoid driving through flooded streets and intersections. To better protect your basement from flooding or to clean up your property after a flood, go to fema.gov for information.

• Flood insurance is strongly recommended. You can go to fema.gov to determine insurance costs to your property and how to obtain flood insurance.

• Call PWD’s hotline number (215-685-6300) where trained call center reps are available during severe weather to better address increased calls and customer problems.