Advice for the aftermath of floods

Water in flooded areas contains a variety of pathogenic organisms from sewage and other materials.Protective clothing and gloves should be worn and fresh water used for all cleaning tasks.

When this is not possible, any available water should be preboiled to kill off pathogens that may be present.

In non-food areas when flooding is less serious or localised, one simple option is to use Good Sense Breakdown.This cleaning product from Diversey, can be used diluted as a hard surface cleaner or neat when poured down drains or toilets. Its active ingredients include powerful cleaners and agents that break down organic matter.

An additional patented Odour Neutralising Technology (ONT) ingredient eliminates strong smells rather than simply masking them with overpowering perfume.

Sometimes the flood will be localised inside the building and it may be possible to prevent longer term effects by removing the contaminated water from the floor quickly.A scrubber drier is good for this as it removes dirt, debris and water from the floor mechanically and places it into its built-in collection tank.The foul water can then be disposed in a safe way to remove the risk of infection and contamination from the flooded area.

Another option is Zorba, a super-absorbent disposable barrier strip that can be used to contain and localised flooding.

Each 60cm of the strip can absorb up to two litres of water.