When floodwater gets inside your Richardson home or building, get everyone out of the water, shut off power to wet areas if you can do it safely, and stop more water from coming in. Then photograph everything, remove what water you can, and start professional drying within the first day or two so walls, floors and cabinets do not stay wet.
Richardson does not look like flood country. Most of the city is flat, built out and crossed by busy roads. But the City of Richardson counts 44.5 miles of creeks spread across 12 drainage basins, with Duck Creek, Cottonwood Creek, Prairie Creek and Spring Creek all running through town. When a heavy North Texas storm parks over the area, those channels and the streets that feed them can fill fast.
The same is true next door in Plano, Garland, Murphy and Sachse. A ground-floor apartment near Central Expressway, a 1970s ranch house a few blocks from Duck Creek, or an office suite along the Telecom Corridor can all take on water in a single evening. What you do in the first hours makes a big difference in how much of the building can be saved.
Why does flash flooding happen in Richardson?
Flash flooding happens when rain falls faster than the ground and the storm drains can carry it away. North Texas gets plenty of that kind of rain. The National Weather Service office in Fort Worth notes that spring and fall are typically the wettest periods of the year for the Metroplex, and that flooding, along with hail and damaging wind, shows up nearly every year.
Richardson sits on Blackland Prairie clay. When that soil is already wet, it does not soak up much more, so runoff moves across yards, parking lots and streets toward the nearest inlet or creek. If an inlet clogs with leaves or the creek rises, water backs up and looks for the next low spot. Sometimes that low spot is your garage, your patio door or the lobby of your building.
Most homes in this part of North Texas sit on concrete slabs instead of basements. That helps in one way, because there is no below-grade room to fill. But once water crosses the threshold, it spreads sideways across the slab, under carpet pad, laminate and tile, and wicks into the bottom of every wall it touches.
Is it safe to stay in a building that is taking on water?
Your safety comes first, and no carpet or couch is worth the risk. Leave the area if water is rising, if you smell gas, or if you hear electrical buzzing or popping. Do not walk through water that may be touching outlets, power strips or an electrical panel.
Stay out of moving water outside, too. The National Weather Service warns that 6 inches of fast-moving water can knock an adult off their feet, and 12 inches of moving water can carry off a small car. If a street near Spring Creek or Cottonwood Creek is covered, turn around and find another way. Come back to the building when the water has stopped rising and the area is safe to enter.
First Steps After Floodwater Gets Inside
Here is the order we recommend for Richardson property owners once it is safe to go back in. Each step is short on purpose, so you can work through it even on a stressful night.
- Shut off power to wet areas. If you can reach the breaker panel without standing in water, turn off circuits that serve flooded rooms. If you cannot reach it safely, wait for a professional.
- Stop the water from coming in. Clear a clogged gutter or drain inlet if you can do it safely, move sandbags or towels to doorways, and close windows that are letting rain in.
- Take photos and video before moving anything. Capture the waterline on walls, wet flooring, damaged furniture and anything stored low. Document everything for your insurance company, and check your policy to see what it says about flood and storm water.
- Get valuables and electronics up and out. Move photos, papers, computers and small furniture to a dry room or a higher floor.
- Remove standing water you can safely reach. A wet vac, mops and towels help. Do not use a household vacuum on wet floors.
- Open interior doors and run the AC. Air movement and lower humidity help, but they will not dry the inside of a wall or a soaked carpet pad on their own.
- Call for professional drying early. Moisture meters and thermal imaging find water you cannot see, and commercial air movers and dehumidifiers dry the structure much faster than box fans.
What kind of water is floodwater, and why does it matter?
Not all water damage is the same. A burst supply line under a sink releases clean water. Floodwater that comes in from outside has run across lawns, streets and parking lots, and it may carry soil, oil, fertilizer and sewage from overwhelmed drains. Restoration professionals treat outside floodwater as contaminated.
That changes what can be saved. Carpet and pad that soaked up outside floodwater usually need to come out. Drywall that wicked up dirty water is normally cut out above the waterline, and insulation behind it is removed. Hard surfaces like tile, sealed concrete and solid wood framing can often be cleaned, disinfected and dried in place.
Wear gloves and rubber boots when you handle anything that touched floodwater, and wash your hands well afterward. Keep children and pets out of the affected rooms until cleanup is done.
How does flooding affect slab homes and older Richardson buildings?
A lot of Richardson housing went up between the 1960s and the 1980s, and much of it sits on slab foundations. Water that reaches a slab has nowhere to drain, so it can stay trapped under flooring and tack strip for days. The bottom plates of walls, which rest directly on the slab, soak up moisture and can stay wet even when the painted drywall above looks dry.
Older homes also tend to have more layers to check. You might find vinyl tile under carpet, or paneling over drywall, and each layer holds water differently. Built-in cabinets and bookcases trap moisture behind them. In apartment and condo buildings, water can travel between units through shared walls and plumbing chases, so the unit next door or below may need checking too.
Commercial buildings near the Telecom Corridor and UT Dallas bring their own issues. Raised access floors, server rooms, elevator pits and long runs of carpet tile all need a plan that gets the space back in use without leaving hidden moisture behind.
How long does it take to dry a flooded building?
Drying time depends on how much water got in, how long it sat, what materials it reached and the weather outside. A small area caught early can often be dried in a few days. A larger loss with wet walls, cabinets and subfloor takes longer, especially if some materials need to be removed first.
The goal is to get materials dry, not just to make the surface feel dry. A good restoration crew sets drying goals based on readings from unaffected materials in the same building, then checks readings every day until the wet areas match. The EPA notes that mold can begin to grow on wet materials within 24 to 48 hours, which is why fast drying matters so much after a flood.
How can Richardson property owners lower their flood risk?
You cannot control the weather, but you can make it harder for water to get inside. A few habits make a real difference.
- Keep gutters, downspouts and the storm inlet in front of your home clear, especially after fall leaves drop.
- Make sure soil and mulch slope away from your foundation, not toward it.
- Check door sweeps and thresholds on doors that face the street or a low part of the yard.
- Store important papers and keepsakes off the floor in garages and closets.
- Know where your water shutoff and electrical panel are, and keep the path to them clear.
- If you own or manage a commercial building, walk the roof drains and parking lot inlets before heavy rain is forecast.
When should you call a restoration company after a flood?
Call as soon as water has entered the building and it is safe to go back inside. Waiting a few days to see if things dry out on their own often leads to swollen cabinets, warped flooring and a musty smell that means moisture is still trapped somewhere.
A restoration company can extract standing water, remove materials that cannot be saved, set up drying equipment, monitor progress and document the work. That documentation helps when you talk with your insurance company, and it gives you a clear record of what was done.
Need help after floodwater gets into your Richardson property?
If water has come into your home, apartment or business in Richardson, our IICRC-certified technicians can extract the water, find the hidden moisture and get the structure properly dry with Emergency Water Damage Restoration. Call Best Option Restoration of Richardson 24/7, and we will help you take the next step.