CHESAPEAKE, Va. — We are officially in storm and flooding season here in Hampton Roads.
We’re no strangers to flooding, but because we’re so used to it, we may throw caution to the wind when it comes to driving on flooded roads.
A lot of us have heard the saying “turn around, don’t drown,” but how many people in Hampton Roads actually use this phrase as a guideline?
When I asked the folks on social media, around 25% of you said you’d still drive through a flooded road.
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“The idea is, when you have flash flooding and fast moving waters it can be very dangerous to life and property. But when I talk to my students or people who are new to the area they will say, well if I turn around every time I encounter water on the roads, I’m not going to be able to get out my neighborhood,” said Wie Yusuf, a professor in the School of Public Service at Old Dominion University.
Yusuf has been researching coastal resilience and adaptation for years, focusing on how local governments can play a role in things like flood prevention.
“That messaging, turn around don’t drown, isn’t quite as applicable for communities that experience nuisance flooding, what we might call recurrent flooding or blue sky flooding,” Yusuf told News 3.
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In flash flooding, it usually involves strong running water, and can come out of nowhere. Around here, we have an idea of where flooding is going to occur.
Even though it poses less of a risk to the driver, it can actually cause more damage to your car here when compared to flash flooding in places like the midwest. In this part of the country, instead of seeing that freshwater flooding, it’s brackish water (saltier than freshwater, less salty than ocean water).
“They think that we can just drive right through it, it’s just regular standing water and it’s not gonna a damage their vehicle in the longer term. And that might be the case for one time, two times, but over time it can cause corrosion and damage to the undercarriage of your car,” Yusuf said.
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Yusuf told me that the two most important factors you should take into account before you drive in bad weather: The car you drive, and the alternative routes in the area.
“In the interviews we do with drivers, they talk about how that clearance, that ground clearance, is a factor in the decisions that they make to buy vehicles,” she said.
So if you own a low rider, if you don’t turn around, you probably won’t drown, but you could be out a lot of money on repairs.
Unfortunately, that slogan isn’t as catchy.
