May 22,2009

SOUTH CHARLESTON, W. Va. -- State and local officials urge anyone who had damage to a home or business following the storms that began on May 3 not to wait to start cleaning up their property.

"We want people to clean up as soon as possible to avoid health problems and to be able to get back into their homes," said Jimmy Gianato, director of the West Virginia Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. "It can be helpful to take pictures of the flood damage first, and to keep receipts for any repairs to give to your insurance company."

There are several things we recommend for health and safety reasons:

• Wear protective clothing on hands, arms, feet and legs. If you have cuts on your hands or other parts of the body, this will help shield them from contact with water or debris.
• Wear a filtering face mask, protective goggles and rubber gloves to reduce your exposure to mold and other harmful substances.
• If property owners want to do their own cleaning, they should scrub all hard surfaces with a stiff brush using one-half to one cup of chlorine bleach to one gallon of water. And never mix bleach and ammonia. If you suspect an item may be contaminated by mold and it cannot be cleaned by using this method, it should be thrown away. For mold-infested surfaces, hire an expert if you can.
• If sewers or septic systems have overflowed in or around your home or business, do not run faucets or flush toilets. Assume everything touched by floodwaters is contaminated and needs to be disinfected.
• Remove all standing water in your home or office and dry the building out. If you have a fan put it near an open window or door to help with the drying-out process, make sure the fan blows outward rather than inward.

For further information when you return home after flooding, visit the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources at www.wvdhhr.org/oehs. You can also visit FEMA's web site www.DisasterAssistance.gov.

FEMA leads and supports the nation in a risk-based, comprehensive emergency management system of preparedness, protection, response, recovery, and mitigation, to reduce the loss of life and property and protect the nation from all hazards including natural disasters, acts of terrorism and other man-made disasters.

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