FloodCorrosion

About and safety

FloodCorrosion is a free tool for people in North Jersey who look after computer hardware, from home offices to small-business server closets. It connects two questions that usually get answered separately: what kind of water would flood this spot, and what would that water do to the materials inside the equipment.

Electrical safety warning

Flood-damaged electrical equipment can kill

  • Stay out of flooded rooms until the power to that area has been shut off by a licensed electrician or your utility. Water can carry current from outlets, power strips, and equipment you cannot see.
  • Do not switch on or plug in anything that has been under water, including power strips, UPS units, and computers, until it has been cleaned, dried, and checked.
  • Have building wiring inspected. Panels, breakers, outlets, and wiring that were under water need to be evaluated by a licensed electrician before power is restored. Electrical industry guidance treats much submerged electrical equipment as needing replacement.
  • Treat batteries as hazards. Lithium-ion batteries that were soaked, especially in salt water, can short internally and catch fire hours or days later. Move them outdoors, away from buildings, and recycle them. Lead-acid UPS batteries can leak acid.
  • Never run a generator indoors or in a garage, even with the door open. Carbon monoxide poisoning is a common cause of death after storms.
  • Protect yourself from the water. Flood water and residue can carry sewage, fuel, and chemicals. Wear gloves and eye protection when cleaning equipment.

How it works

When you pick a location, the tool asks two public map services about that exact point.

  1. FEMA flood zone. Is the point in a mapped flood zone, and which one?
  2. NOAA storm surge. Could hurricane storm surge reach the point, and how deep would it get for Category 1 to 4 storms?

It then decides the likely water type with a simple rule:

  • Inside the storm surge area: salt or brackish water, because surge is seawater pushed inland.
  • In a FEMA coastal high-hazard zone (V or VE): also salt water, because those zones are defined by flooding from the sea.
  • In another FEMA flood zone but outside the surge area: fresh water from rivers, streams, or rain.
  • In neither: low mapped flood risk.
  • If a data service does not respond, the tool says so and, where it matters, suggests planning for salt water to be safe.

The "Before a flood" and "After a flood" questionnaires combine that water type with your answers, using rules based on materials engineering and electronics reliability practice, to produce recommendations and a damage assessment. The reasoning behind each recommendation is explained in the materials library.

Data sources

FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer (NFHL)

FEMA's official digital flood maps, compiled from effective Flood Insurance Rate Maps and updated regularly. This tool uses the "Flood Hazard Zones" layer.

https://hazards.fema.gov/arcgis/rest/services/public/NFHL/MapServer (layer 28)

NOAA National Hurricane Center: National Storm Surge Hazard Maps

Near-worst-case storm surge flooding scenarios from the National Weather Service SLOSH model, using "Maximum of MEOWs" (MOMs) for each hurricane category at high tide. The products exclude Category 5 north of the North Carolina/Virginia border, so this tool uses Categories 1 to 4. These maps show what is possible in a near-worst-case storm, not what any single storm will do, and they are not a substitute for official evacuation zones.

https://tiles.arcgis.com/tiles/C8EMgrsFcRFL6LrL/arcgis/rest/services/Storm_Surge_HazardMaps_Category1_v3/MapServer (and Category 2, 3, and 4 equivalents)

Mapping software

Maps, basemap, and address search are provided through the ArcGIS Maps SDK for JavaScript and ArcGIS Location Services from Esri.

FloodCorrosion is not affiliated with or endorsed by FEMA, NOAA, Esri, IPC, JEDEC, ISA, IEC, or NEMA.

Disclaimer

Everything on this site is an estimate based on public data and general engineering principles. It is not:

  • an official flood zone determination, an elevation certificate, or a flood insurance rating;
  • a forecast of any actual storm, or a substitute for evacuation orders and official emergency guidance;
  • a professional engineering assessment, electrical inspection, or damage evaluation of any specific equipment.

Flood maps can be out of date, can miss local drainage problems, and do not show every source of flooding. Storm surge maps show near-worst-case scenarios that a given storm may not match. Materials recommendations are general guidance; the right choice for a particular product depends on details this tool cannot know. For decisions that matter, consult a licensed professional engineer, your equipment vendors, your insurer, and your local floodplain administrator.

The site is provided as is, without warranty of any kind. You use it at your own risk.

Privacy

This site has no accounts, does not store the locations you look up, and sets no tracking cookies of its own. To answer your question, your browser sends the location you choose directly to FEMA's and NOAA's map services, and address searches go to Esri's geocoding service. Those services have their own privacy policies.