Flooding can have a severe impact on people’s mental health.
Studies have shown there is an increase in antidepressants prescribed after an area has suffered from serious flooding.
According to Public Health England (PHE): “Flooding can have profound effects on people’s mental health and well-being that may continue over extended periods of time. Distress is a common reaction for people following a flood.”
And PHE also warns that people face further stress as they try to repair their flood-damaged homes, especially if the companies they use fail to come up to scratch.
PHE added: “While experiencing a flood is the primary cause of stress for people who are affected, it is important to remember that the stress and strain associated with dealing with cleaning up and recovery may also be a problem. This is particularly the case if recovery and rebuilding is managed poorly by responding agencies and private companies.”
Other flood-related stress is caused by:
A breakdown in household activities and separation from friends.
Feeling of loss of control and fear of recurrence of another extreme event.
Problems with compensation, repairing and rebuilding homes.
Loss of employment and/or income.
Loss of physical possessions and resources.
Homeowners and businesses often don’t realise that councils have no responsibility to provide sandbags if flooding is expected. They must protect themselves and one way to do this is to have FloodSax alternative sandbags which are space-saving to store and easy to deploy. It means you have peace of mind and are ready for action 24/7 to prevent a flood.
Once FloodSax come into contact with water they inflate to weigh 20kg (44lbs) which makes them more effective than traditional sandbags at keeping floodwater out.
More than 2.5 million have now been sold worldwide.