Driving in Flood Waters, Dont Do it!
January 7, 2009 by Cameron Wong
If you’ve ever lived in the Midwest or part of Texas, you know that many fatalities happen when people try and drive through high waters in a car. It takes just ankle to knee-high water to stall your vehicle. Avoid high waters at all costs.
Here are some sobering facts when it comes to driving in floods.
- Over 50% of flood related drownings are vehicle-related
- In Texas, the nations leader in flood related fatalities, 65% of those fatalities happen when a vehicle is in the water.
Check out this excerpt from Floodsafety.com
Ironically, many drivers rescued from flood waters report that they were in a hurry to get home– to safety — as a reason for tempting the danger of driving into water. However it looks, and despite what car commercials depict, driving into flood waters may be the most dangerous things one might ever try considering the following:
Just because the truck/car in front of you can drive through the water, doesn’t mean you can. If you can’t see theyellow line in the middle of the road, you shouldn’t be driving on it. Another thing to remember is that even with your high beams on, it is nearly impossible to see the road when there’s a lot of water on it.
Floodsafety.com also suggests that in 18-24 inches of moving water, most cars and trucks will be swept away. Trucks and SUVs have only about 6-12 more inches of clearance. If in doubt, don’t drive thru water that’s over 6 inches deep.
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