Experts say it's important to cleanup flooded areas quickly to avoid more damage
NORTH TEXAS (CBSDFW.COM) - After watching your home fill up with water following a flood, the immediate reaction may be to wonder where you start.
Disaster response experts are emphasizing the importance of starting a thorough cleanup fast, before mold makes the situation worse.
At a home in Dallas on Thursday, a team from the Texas Baptist Men was carrying all the furniture out of a home that filled with up to three feet of water during Monday's storms.
Anything upholstered, and not made of solid wood usually has to go. Water that rushes in, and rushes out, as opposed to sitting and soaking the home may make some pieces salvageable, but if in doubt its better to let it go.
Flooring is next, said Eric Burkes, with Minuteman Disaster Response out of McKinney. Carpet and wood needs to be stripped out down to the concrete and tossed.
Burkes said they'll turn on the air conditioning or set up fans to start the drying process then while they take out drywall, often cutting up to two feet above the water line.
They'll also spray everything down with an antibacterial, antifungal treatment to kill any early mold and prevent any from setting in.
That work can sometimes take a team a full day or two to complete, but even if a homeowner doesn't have the means to pay a professional to cleanup, it can save a home from becoming unlivable.
"It is a lot of work but you can definitely mitigate the effects and the damage to your home by getting that wet stuff out as quickly as possible," Burkes said.