NHS Data Digest: Flood Safety

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National Household Survey (NHS) Information

2020 NHS Key Findings

Key Messages: Flood Safety

Map 1: FEMA National Risk Index: Flood (combined coastal and riverine flood risk by county)

Table 1: Financial Resiliency.

The following questions were asked of NHS respondents; their responses informed this key message.

• Question: Do you have homeowners or renters insurance for your residence?
• Question: Do you have a separate flood insurance policy from the National Flood Insurance Program or from a private insurance company?

Table 2: Awareness Information for people living in flood-prone areas. Of the 502 respondents living in flood-prone areas, 209 indicated that they received information about preparedness. Results above show the types of information that these 209 individuals read, saw, or heard.

The following question was asked of NHS respondents; their responses informed this key message.

• Question: In the past six months, have you read, seen, or heard any information about how to get better prepared for a flood?
• Question: What was it that you read, saw, or heard about how to get better prepared for a flood? By disaster, we mean events that could threaten lives, disrupt public or emergency services like water and power, or damage property.

The following questions were asked of NHS respondents; their responses informed this key message.

• Question: How confident are you that you can take the steps to prepare for a disaster?
• Question: How much would taking steps to prepare, such as creating a household emergency plan, developing an evacuation and shelter plan, signing up for alerts and warning systems, or stocking up on supplies help you get through a disaster? Would it help?

Data Tables and Charts

Preparedness Actions

Chart 1: Taking Action to Prepare for a Flood

Table 3: Preparedness Actions for U.S. Flood-Prone Populations.

The following questions were asked of NHS respondents; their responses informed the data points in Chart 1 and Table 3.

• Question: Do you have enough supplies set aside in your home to get you through three days or more without power or running water and without transportation?
• Question: How recently have you talked with others in your community about getting prepared for a disaster? Has it been within the past year, more than a year ago, or never?
• Question: How recently have you attended a meeting or training on preparedness about your local disasters? Has it been within the past year, more than a year ago, or never?
• Question: How recently have you sought information about preparedness? Has it been within the past year, more than a year ago, or never?
• Question: In the past year, have you practiced what to do in a disaster by participating in a disaster preparedness exercise or drill at: Home? Work? School? Another community location?
• Question: Has your household developed and discussed an emergency plan that includes instructions for household members about where to go and what to do in the event of a local disaster?

Table 4: Additional Preparedness Actions.

The following questions were asked of NHS respondents; their responses informed the data points in Table 4.

• Question: Do you have emergency supplies already packed that you can grab easily in case you have to evacuate your home quickly?
• Question: Do you have copies of critical documents, such as identification, insurance, and banking information, stored in a fireproof/waterproof location or stored electronically?
• Question: In the event of a disaster that required you to leave your area, would you need to rely on public transportation or the local authorities for transportation in order to leave?
• Question: Do you know how you will get real-time alerts and warnings for disasters in your community?

Preparedness Influencers

Chart 2: Adults Reporting Preparedness Influencers in the Flood-Prone Population.

The following questions were asked of NHS respondents, their responses informed the data points in Chart 2.

• Question: In the past six months, have you read, seen, or heard any information about how to get better prepared for a disaster? By disaster, I mean events that could threaten lives, disrupt public or emergency services like water and power, or damage property.
• Question: Have you or your family ever experienced the impacts of a disaster?
• Question: How much would taking steps to prepare, such as creating a household emergency plan, developing an evacuation and shelter plan, signing up for alerts and warning systems, or stocking up on supplies help you get through a disaster?
• Question: How confident are you that you can take the steps to prepare for a disaster?
• Question: All areas of the country are subject to different types of disasters. Will you please name the types of disasters that would have the biggest impact where you live?

Awareness

Respondents in the 2020 NHS are moving away from getting their information (read, saw or heard) “TV, TV news, weather channels” (51 percent in 2019 and 32 percent in 2020) to “social media” (5 percent in 2019 and 17 percent in 2020).

Table 5: Awareness – Sources.

The following question was asked of NHS respondents; their responses informed the data points in Chart 3.

• Question: In the past six months, have you read, seen, or heard any information about how to get better prepared for a disaster?
• Question: What was it that you read, saw, or heard about how to get better prepared for a disaster?
• Question: How did you get the information that you read, saw, or heard about getting better prepared for a disaster.

Stages of Change

Chart 3: Perceived Preparedness for Individuals Who Live in Flood-Prone Areas.

The following questions were asked of NHS respondents; their responses informed the data points in Chart 3.

• Question: Thinking about preparing yourself for a disaster, such as developing and discussing an action plan with your family, learning about how to leave your community or where to shelter, and setting aside supplies such as food, water, and other essentials that allow you to be self-sufficient for at least three days, which of the following best represents your degree of preparedness?
• Question: Which of the following best represents your preparedness?

Financial Resilience

Fewer individuals in flood-prone are saving money for an emergency compared to last year (70 percent in 2019 and 67 percent in 2020). How can we encourage individuals in flood-prone areas to save money for an emergency?

Most likely actions to take if flooding happened in the community	Flood-Prone Population 2019	Flood-Prone Population 2020
Following a planned route to evacuate by car or other transportation	41%	40%
Going to the highest floor in a building	37%	35%
Climbing to a high place outside	19%	11%
Other	2%	13%

Table 6: Flood-Prone Area Specific Question 1.

The following question was asked of NHS respondents; their responses informed the data points in Table 6.

• Question: Which of the following actions are you most likely to take in the event there was flooding in your community?

Believes that timely information will be received from local authorities in the event of a flood, on what to do	Flood-Prone Population 2019	Flood-Prone Population 2020
Yes	82%	83%

Table 7: Flood-Prone Area Specific Question 2.

The following question was asked of NHS respondents; their responses informed the data points in Table 7.

• Question: In the event of a flood, do you believe you will receive timely information from local authorities that gives you specific instructions on what to do based on your community?

Most likely flooding that would happen in the community	Flood-Prone Population 2019	Flood-Prone Population 2020
Coastal Surge: This is ocean water being pushed on shore during a storm.	10%	2%
Riverine: This is rivers overflowing their banks.	15%	12%
Urban: This is flooding from nearby water or heavy rains that overflow drainage systems and flood the streets.	36%	32%
Flash Flood: This is a sudden flood with a high volume of water going over dry land and roads.	37%	45%
Other	2%	8%

Table 8: Flood-Prone Area Specific Question 3.

The following question was asked of NHS respondents; their responses informed the data points in Table 8.

• Question: When you think about possible flooding, what is the MOST likely type of flooding you think would happen in your community?

Helpful Links

• 2020 National Household Survey: https://community.fema.gov/story/2020-NHS-Data-Digest-Summary-Results
• National Household Survey Datasets on OpenFEMA (raw data): https://go.usa.gov/xpmBU
• FEMA Preparedness Research: https://www.ready.gov/preparedness-research
• Flood Protective Actions Research: https://community.fema.gov/ProtectiveActions/s/article/Flood
• Flood Preparedness Tips: https://www.ready.gov/floods
• Flood Animation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LmCnXWN0Dwc
• Flood Information Sheet: https://www.ready.gov/sites/default/files/2020-03/flood_information-sheet.pdf
• Order Free Preparedness Materials and Hazard Information Sheets: https://orders.gpo.gov/icpd/ICPD