What to Do After a Flood: 7 Immediate Steps
The first hour after water enters your home matters more than any other part of the recovery. Here's a tight, first-hour-only checklist covering what to do before help arrives.
Why the first hour matters
Flooding gets worse the longer it's left alone. Water travels into subfloor, wall cavities and skirting far faster than it looks like it should, and the risk of mould starting to establish itself rises sharply within the first day or two. This checklist covers only the first hour — the immediate actions worth taking before a restoration professional arrives, not the longer insurance and repair process that follows.
If you're looking for guidance on the fuller recovery journey — insurance timelines, drying, and getting your home back to normal — that's covered separately. This page is deliberately narrow: safety and damage limitation in the first sixty minutes.
1. Cut power and water at the source
Electricity and standing water are a dangerous combination, so this comes first, and only if it can be done safely.
If water has reached power points, appliances or the switchboard itself, turn off power at the switchboard — but only if you can reach it without stepping into water. If the switchboard is already wet or you're unsure, leave it and wait for a professional rather than taking a risk.
If the water is coming from inside the property — a burst pipe, a failed hose on a washing machine or dishwasher, a leaking hot water cylinder — shut off the main water valve. It's usually located near the water meter at the boundary of the property or where the main supply enters the house. Knowing where this valve is before an emergency happens is worth five minutes of your time.
- Only approach the switchboard if you can do so without stepping into water.
- If the switchboard or power points are already wet, leave power on and wait for a professional.
- Locate and shut off the main water valve if the source is inside your home.
- If the water is coming from outside — stormwater or an external source — the main valve won't help; focus on safety and call a professional instead.
2. Call a professional, then document before you touch anything
Once immediate safety is addressed, call a flood restoration professional. The sooner extraction and drying can start, the smaller the area of damage tends to be.
Before you move, wipe, or clean up anything, take photos and video of the standing water, the affected rooms, and any damaged contents. This record is genuinely useful later — for your own reference and for your insurer — and it's much harder to capture accurately once items have been moved or water has been mopped up.
- Call a professional as early as possible — extraction and drying started sooner generally means less material needs replacing later.
- Photograph and video affected rooms and contents before touching or moving anything.
- Note the approximate time the flooding started or was discovered, if you can.
3. Notify your insurer, then move only undamaged items
Contact your insurer as soon as practical after documenting the damage. Most standard home and contents policies provide some cover for sudden, accidental water damage, though the details vary by policy and insurer — your insurer can tell you what applies to your situation and what steps they'd like you to take next.
Only after the damage has been documented should you start moving items. Rugs, cushions, bedding and other soft furnishings sitting in or near water are worth moving to a dry area to limit further soaking, but documenting first protects your ability to show what happened.
- Notify your insurer promptly and ask what emergency mitigation steps they'd like documented.
- Move undamaged or lightly affected items (rugs, cushions, bedding) away from wet areas only after photographing them in place.
- Keep any severely damaged items aside rather than discarding them until your insurer has had a chance to assess them.
4. Ventilate the right way — and skip the fans
Opening windows and doors, where weather and security allow, helps air move through the affected space and can take a small amount of pressure off the drying process ahead.
What you shouldn't do is point a household fan at standing flood water. It feels like a natural instinct, but a fan blowing across contaminated water can throw fine droplets — and the mould spores they carry — further into the property, spreading contamination into rooms and materials that weren't otherwise affected. Structural drying is a job for calibrated air movers and dehumidifiers used by a professional, not a household fan.
- Open windows and doors for general airflow if it's safe and practical to do so.
- Do not point household fans at flood water — this can spread contaminated droplets and mould spores further into the property.
- Leave mechanical drying to professional equipment once a technician has assessed the property.
Key takeaways
- Only approach the switchboard if you can reach it without stepping into water.
- Shut off the main water valve if the source of the flooding is inside your home.
- Photograph and document every affected area and item before you move or touch anything.
- Notify your insurer early, and move only undamaged items after documentation is complete.
- Never use a household fan on flood water — it can spread contamination rather than dry the area.
Frequently asked questions
Is it safe to turn off my power during a flood?
Only if you can reach the switchboard without stepping into water. If the switchboard itself is wet or you're unsure, leave the power on and wait for a professional rather than risking electric shock.
Why shouldn't I use a fan to dry a flooded room?
A household fan blowing across contaminated flood water can throw fine water droplets, along with any mould spores or contaminants they carry, further into the property. Ventilating with open windows is fine; mechanical drying is best left to professional air movers and dehumidifiers.
Should I start cleaning up before my insurer sees the damage?
Photograph and video the damage first. Once that's done, it's generally fine to move undamaged items to a dry area, but check with your insurer before discarding anything that's been badly damaged.
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