Water damage in Howard Beach: bay flooding, basements and the next storm

Queens Water Damage Restoration is an independent referral service, not a restoration company. When you send the form, your details go to an independent local restoration provider serving Queens, who can contact you, inspect and quote any work directly. You decide whether to hire them.

Bay water and high tides

Superstorm Sandy in 2012 flooded the city’s coasts. The NYC Health Department counts 52 injury deaths in the city from Sandy, most along the coasts, and 25 percent of them in Queens. At least a third of those who drowned at home were found in a basement or lived in a basement apartment. The Health Department also reports a 200 percent increase in high tide flood days from 2000 to 2021, and says higher tides mean flooding can happen even when there is no severe weather.

DEP describes coastal flooding as high tide combined with storm surge sending tidal water back into the sewer system. In a neighborhood like Howard Beach, that means water can come up through basement drains, not only over the bulkhead.

Bay water is Category 3

The ANSI/IICRC S500 lists all forms of flooding from seawater among its examples of Category 3 water, which it defines as grossly contaminated and able to carry harmful agents. Sewage is on the same list. For Category 3 water, the S500 says remediation should happen before restorative drying, with contamination controls and worker protection, and the EPA’s advice is to call in a professional with experience cleaning buildings damaged by contaminated water. The CDC says drywall and insulation contaminated by floodwater are removed and discarded, and lists carpeting, carpet padding and upholstered furniture among things to throw away when they cannot be cleaned or dried quickly.

Going back in

• Keep out of the basement while water is near outlets, the panel, the boiler or the water heater. Switch the main power off only from a dry place.
• Have an electrician check the electrical system before the power goes back on.
• If you smell gas, the CDC says to turn off the main gas valve, open the windows and leave at once.
• Generators go outside, at least 20 feet from the house, as the EPA advises; OSHA notes gas pumps give off carbon monoxide too.
• If you must enter floodwater, the CDC says rubber boots, rubber gloves and goggles; children and pets out.
• Photograph everything before anything goes to the curb.

The full order of work is on flood cleanup in Queens.

Backwater valves and the FloodHelpNY program

FloodHelpNY’s Residential Backwater Valve Installation Program has listed Howard Beach among its eligible communities, together with Rockaway East and several Brooklyn and Manhattan waterfront areas. Whether the program is taking applications now should be checked on FloodHelpNY’s own site. A backwater valve is there to stop sewer water flowing back into the house; FloodHelpNY lists gate, ball and flapper types and says a plumber or engineer can tell you which, if any, suits your home. See basement waterproofing.

Flood maps and flood insurance

FEMA’s high-risk flood area, the Special Flood Hazard Area, is the area with a 1 percent chance of flooding in any year; NYC notes that is a 26 percent chance over a 30-year mortgage. Check your own address on NYC’s flood maps pages, and your hurricane evacuation zone separately with the Zone Finder or 311. FloodSmart says most homeowners insurance does not cover flood damage, and a flood policy generally takes effect 30 days after purchase. Check your own policy or ask your agent.

Near Howard Beach

Across the bay: the Rockaways. Inland: Richmond Hill and Jamaica. Ozone Park is on the Queens neighborhoods page.

Questions people ask