Winter Farm Flood Health Threats: Risk Factors During Recovery

This presentation will highlight basic precautions to prevent possible diseases and injuries during and after flooding. Floodwater can be contaminated by pollutants including sewage, human and animal feces, pesticides and insecticides, fertilizers, oil, asbestos, rusting building materials, and others.

Winter floods can heighten the risk of health threats such as mold, tetanus bacteria, contaminated well-water, hypothermia and high stress. This is especially true on farms and ranches where inherent farm hazards such as machinery and equipment, livestock, and agricultural chemicals are displaced and co-mingle, putting all emergency response personnel, farm workers and family members in danger.