After the water drops, leave the switches and pilot lights alone

Why leave first if you smell gas?

Because the utility and the state both put getting out ahead of everything else. New Jersey Natural Gas says to evacuate everyone immediately and call from a safe location, and not to use phones of any kind on the premises. The state's Department of Community Affairs says that if the odor is strong, "leave the premises on foot and dial 911 from a cellphone." The two agree on the order, and that order is the part to remember. We could not confirm which gas utility serves each part of Ocean County, so check your bill.

Can you relight a heater or furnace that got wet?

No. Do not relight or restart a water heater, furnace, boiler or other gas appliance that has been in floodwater, and do not run electric ones either. Have a licensed professional inspect it first, and call your gas utility about the gas service. This is a place where a raised house can fool you: the living floor looks fine while the equipment at the lower level sat under water. Our water heater story covers where a replacement should go.

Gas lines, meters and regulators are for the utility and licensed people, with no exceptions in this site.

Where can the generator go?

Outside, always. EPA's flooding page wants generators "outside well away from doors, windows, and vents," and never inside homes, garages, crawlspaces or sheds. The enclosure under a raised house is a garage or a crawlspace by another name, even with flood openings in its walls. Do not run one there, or on a stair landing beside a door.

Is the power safe to touch?

Treat it as live and leave it. Ready.gov warns against touching electrical gear that is wet, or any of it while you stand in water. A breaker check is fine only if you can reach the breaker in the dry, never from standing water. Anything beyond that, including wet panels, outlets or wiring under the house, is for a licensed electrician.

What about the drains and the sewer?

Stop using them if sewage is backing up, stay clear of the sewage, and get a licensed plumber. FEMA's P-348 says drain piping can carry floodwater, and a backwater valve on the lateral is one protection worth asking about later. Do not try to open or clear a sewer line in the middle of a flood.

If you are on septic, EPA's flood page says to hold off on the sewage system until water in the drain field has dropped below the level around the house. It also warns against pumping while the field is flooded, since an empty tank could lift out of the ground. See septic after a flood.

Stay out of any tank or pit and do not lean over one. Hydrogen sulfide exposure is a hazard of septic tank work, OSHA says, and such work counts as confined space. Gases there can kill. Pump-outs and repairs are for licensed people.

What about a well?

Leave the pump off until its wiring has passed a check by a qualified electrician, or by a contractor who works on wells and pumps. EPA's warning cites the danger of electrical shock. EPA names a well or pump contractor as the first choice to disinfect, and it sends owners to the local health department for testing afterward. It treats wells over 10 years old or under 50 feet deep as likely contaminated even when nothing looks damaged. Drink none of it until a test says so. The rest is in our well story.

What about town water and the lines under the house?

Follow your water utility's notices, and leave its valves in the street alone. If a line under the house is broken or leaking, close your own main valve if the spot is dry, and call a licensed plumber. Look for lines that were knocked loose from their straps or bent, and describe what you see from a safe distance. If you are on the bay side, the lagoon story on high water goes further.