Roads are continuing to shut down as the flood waters rise.

From HUGE piles of snirt, to flooded roadways, Kalamazoo is experiencing one of the wildest winter I can remember.

We all know how to stay safe on the streets in bad weather, but I am not sure how educated we are in flood safety. I know personally a number of years ago I drove my jeep through standing water, and stalled out. It took the kindness of a few strangers to push my vehicle out of the very large puddle. What was so horrible about that situation was that I not only risked my car, my safety, but the safety of the nice people just trying to help a gal out. I was lucky that everything turned out okay, and I did learn my lesson.

The City of Kalamazoo put together a fantastic list how to stay safe in this wet time.

Safety Tips From Kalamazoocity.org About What To Do In A Flood

Turn Around, Don’t Drown! ®
Avoid walking or driving through flood waters.
Do not drive over bridges that are over fast-moving floodwaters. Floodwaters can scour foundation material from around the footings and make the bridge unstable.
Just 6 inches of moving water can knock you down, and one foot of moving water can sweep your vehicle away.
If there is a chance of flash flooding, move immediately to higher ground.
If floodwaters rise around your car but the water is not moving, abandon the car and move to higher ground. Do not leave the car and enter moving water.
Avoid camping or parking along streams, rivers, and creeks during heavy rainfall. These areas can flood quickly and with little warning.

No matter what remember that safety comes first. No material object is worth risking your life for.