FLOOD02514 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Floors. Floors should be designed to withstand the ver- tical pressures associated with flooding This requires con- sideration of soil composition and ground Water levels, as well as the likely flood levels in relation to building eleva- tions. Floor design should provide adequate thickness and reinforcing to resist \\'ater pressure, and can include the pro- vision of extra weight (eg, concrete pads) to prevent flota- tion Floors should be securely anchored to foundations, and joints between wall. and floors should be securely tied and sealed to prevent displacement or seepage lOotings and Ebundations. Footings and foundations require special consideration in flood-prone areas. They should be at a sufficient depth and on bearing soil in or- der to provide the necessary lateral resistance to water pressure, and should also be able to resist vertical pres- sures. In some cases this may require additional anchor- age with pilings or extra weighting with concrete pads. Also necessary is the proteaion of footings and founda- tions from erosion and scour, which is especially impor- tant where they will be subjected to extreme velOCities, such as with coastal tides and storm surge& Utililies. All utility lines should either enter the build- ing above the base flood elevation or be waterproofed and secured to prevent displacement due to water pres- sure When a utility line enters the building below the base flood level, it should be routed so that the interior outlet point is above the flood level Internal and external fittings that are below flood levels should be thoroughly waterproofed, and control panels should be above the base flood elevation to allow access during flooding Con- trols for lower floors and basements can often be isolated to allow them to be disconnected independently during flooding Mechanical !!ystems. All mechanical equipment and controls should be located above the base flood elevation to prevent damage and to allow access to the equipment during flooding The duct work associated with the me- chanical system should be elevated or otherwise pro- tected from water damage. Plumbing. Floor drains and other plumbing will often be unavoidably located below the base flood level They should be fitted with valves to prevent the backflow of water that would damage the interior of the building Sump pumps should be installed to remove small quanti- ties of water, with the drain outlet of the pump located above the base flood level and an emergency power source available wet Floodproofing. As mentioned earlier, wet flood- proofing is a special technique that can be used under certain circumstances to reduce flood damage The distin- guishing characteristic of wet floodproofing is that rather than trying to keep water out, Water is purposely intra- T ,"- . . . . 1IIIIIIIilllllllll Detail 1 Del8I12 Secure connections be- tween different parts of the building are neceS5ary to prevent flood damage. The building must be firmly anchored to foundations (1) and founda#ons must be anchored to footings (2). ?be house below was not adequately anchored to its founda#on. Department of Housing and Lrhan Development 71