BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ( WIAT ) — Many places in Jefferson County are prone to flooding when there is heavy rain and first responders are preparing for that possibility this week.
When roads flood, the biggest thing first responders want people to remember is “Turn around, don’t drown.” Birmingham Fire and Rescue says it only takes six inches of water to float a car.
“If you can’t see the road because the water’s over it, you don’t know the road is there,” Battalion Chief Clay Hendon said.
Hendon says the water that will mainly be flooding the roads this week is brown runoff water, adding an extra layer of difficulty to flooded roads.
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“The typical concern is that you’ll drive your car through it and the car will stall out because you get water in the intake and the engine. But there’s other issues involved with that as far as the road washing out and you don’t know,” Hendon said. “The other issue is when your manhole covers and sewage and storm systems, when those come under water, they flood and it will displace those covers for those manholes.”