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Severe Storms and Floods

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Severe Storms and Floods

Cold weather and severe storms can affect both animal and human health. Wind chill and prolonged cold increase the need for adequate shelter, feed, and clean water. Severe storms and flooding can also cause significant damage to property, crops, and local infrastructure — leading to both financial and environmental impacts.

Animals may become displaced or injured during these events and could require temporary shelter, feed, water, or veterinary care.

If your farm, crops, or livestock are affected, report damage to your local U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency (USDA FSA) office. The FSA offers several disaster assistance programs to help farmers and ranchers recover.

Use the resources below to help prepare for and recover from winter storms and flooding events.

Flooding Prepardness 
Floods can damage crops, land, buildings, and equipment. Even if you’ve never experienced flooding, changing weather and land use can increase your risk.

Understand your flooding risk

Check whether your property lies within a floodplain using the FEMA Flood Map Service Center or Washington’s Flood Hazard Map. Look for signs of past flooding on your land such as ponding, poor drainage, or runoff channels. Identify nearby rivers, levees, dikes, and flood control structures that could influence your risk.

Assess your farm’s key assets and vulnerabilities:

  • Which equipment, livestock, or buildings are most exposed?

  • Are structures floodproofed or insured?

  • Do you have higher ground or alternate storage areas?

Create a Farm Flood Readiness Plan

A written plan will help you protect your operation and respond quickly. Include:

  • Contact list: Maintain current phone numbers for veterinarians, neighbors, suppliers, and staff—both printed and digital copies.

  • Farm map: Mark buildings, hazardous materials, livestock areas, and access routes for responders.

  • Evacuation plan: Define roles, communication methods, evacuation routes, and assembly points.

  • Livestock plan: Identify safe shelter or relocation sites and keep backup feed, water, and identification ready.

General Flood Preparedness

  • Know your risk: Review FEMA and Washington State flood maps.

  • Stay informed: Sign up for local alerts and keep a NOAA weather radio.

  • Have a communications plan: Keep devices charged and contact lists available.

  • Review insurance coverage: Ensure your policy includes flood protection for property and livestock.

  • Build an emergency kit: Pack food, water, medicine, clothing, and supplies for people and animals. Visit Ready.gov for a full checklist.

  • Prepare livestock: Identify elevated areas, ready trailers and halters, and prepare a waterproof livestock emergency kit with three days of feed, water, and veterinary records.

  • Protect equipment and records: Move machinery, feed, and chemicals to higher ground. Store documents in waterproof containers.

Flood Weather and Patterns in Washington

Floods can damage crops, buildings, roads, utilities, and livestock. Seasonal weather and geography affect when and where flooding occurs:

  • Fall to early winter: Heavy rain on saturated or frozen ground (Western WA).

  • Winter to early spring: Rain combined with snowmelt increases river flows statewide.

  • Late spring: Snowmelt from the Cascades can flood rivers and farmland (Eastern WA).

  • Summer: Intense thunderstorms can cause flash floods in Eastern WA and occasionally in Western WA.

Types of floods:
River flooding, coastal flooding, overland flooding, levee breaches, and groundwater flooding all pose threats depending on location.

Temporary Floodproofing

If flooding is expected, take short-term protective actions:

  • Use temporary barriers or flood shields to protect buildings.

  • Move equipment and feed to higher ground.

  • Use impermeable “flood bags” for smaller machinery.

  • Have a backup generator, stored fuel, and at least 72 hours of potable water for people and livestock.

Stay Informed and Sign Up for Alerts

Flood alerts and warnings are managed locally and statewide. Stay connected through:

If you live in a coastal or tsunami-risk area, visit WA Alerts: Tsunami Information to learn more.

Response 

What to do during a flood

  • Monitor official alerts and social media updates.

  • Move quickly to higher ground and avoid low-lying areas.

  • Follow evacuation orders and disconnect utilities if time allows.

  • Never drive through floodwaters — “Turn around, don’t drown.”

  • Avoid contact with floodwater and use bottled water if wells are flooded.

Protecting Livestock

  • Shelter in place: Keep animals on secure, elevated ground with feed and water.

  • Relocate: Move animals early to prearranged safe sites or host farms. Clearly identify animals.

  • Release (last resort): If evacuation isn’t possible, release animals to higher ground and notify authorities once it’s safe.

Recovery

What to do after a flood

Return only when officials say it’s safe. Watch for debris, downed power lines, and unstable structures. Wear gloves and boots during cleanup and avoid mold exposure.
Boil water until authorities confirm it’s safe. Document all damage with photos before making repairs, then contact your insurance provider immediately.

Financial and Disaster Assistance

If your farm or ranch has been affected, help may be available through:

Local support

  • County Emergency Management Offices – shelters, supplies, and local recovery information.

  • Local Conservation Districts – technical and recovery support.

State resources

Federal resources

Essential Resources

Multilingual & Accessible Resources

For more information

Floods and Your Livestock, The Center for Food Security and Public Health
Winter Storms and Your Pets/Livestock, The Center for Food Security and Public Health
Thunderstorms and Your Pets/Livestock,  The Center for Food Security and Public Health