What to do in a flood

Find out more about where to access advice and guidance for protecting yourself and your home in heavy rain and flooding.

Flood advice for your area

	Website	Phone Number
England		Floodline: 0345 988 1188
Northern Ireland		Northern Ireland flooding incident line: 0300 2000 100 To report flooding problems on roads or burst water mains and blocked drains. This is a non-emergency number, if you are in danger, call 999.
Scotland		Floodline: 0345 988 1188
Wales		Floodline: 0345 988 1188

Flood warnings

There are three types of warnings to help you prepare for flooding and take action.

	What impact might be evident
Flood Alert Flooding is possible, be prepared	In Scotland, the Flood Alert is a regional product which provides a more general message for a larger geographical area about coastal, river and surface water flooding. In England and Wales, Flood Alerts also cover larger areas than flood warnings and are issued more frequently.
Flood Warning Flooding is expected, immediate action required	Flooding of homes and businesses Flooding of rail lines Major impacts on roads Significant waves & spray Inundation of flood plains, low lying and river side areas like campsites and caravan parks
Severe Flood Warning Severe flooding is expected. This may bring a danger to life.	Deep and fast-flowing water. Debris in the water causing danger. Potential or observed collapse of buildings and structures. Communities isolated by flood waters. Critical infrastructure for communities disabled. Potential evacuees.

What impact might be evident

flood-alert

Flood Alert

Flooding is possible, be prepared

In Scotland, the Flood Alert is a regional product which provides a more general message for a larger geographical area about coastal, river and surface water flooding.

In England and Wales, Flood Alerts also cover larger areas than flood warnings and are issued more frequently.

flood-warning

Flood Warning

Flooding is expected, immediate action required

Flooding of homes and businesses
Flooding of rail lines
Major impacts on roads
Significant waves & spray
Inundation of flood plains, low lying and river side areas like campsites and caravan parks

severe-flood-warning

Severe Flood Warning

Severe flooding is expected. This may bring a danger to life.

Deep and fast-flowing water.
Debris in the water causing danger.
Potential or observed collapse of buildings and structures.
Communities isolated by flood waters.
Critical infrastructure for communities disabled.
Potential evacuees.

In Northern Ireland a system to alert media outlets to potential issues with flooding is in place and information is issued to the public via social media channels