We  moved to Samish Island almost 4 years ago, after saying we would never live in a flood zone. We love the sunshine, and a lot less rain than some areas. Although I love where we live, have learned to prepare for flooding.

On January 7, 2022 we had a king tide that came within an inch of flooding our home. Luckily the water receded away and we were told that those levels of water hadn’t been seen in 35 years. We had standing water for most of the week and were happy when it dried up! On December 27th of last year, we had an expected 11’ king tide and in the previous days, we had noticed that the king tides didn’t seem to be getting close to the homes in our neighborhood. So, weren’t too worried about the water reaching us!

Unfortunately, the 11” tide was higher than expected and the barometric pressure dropped to lower than was predicted. These conditions, mixed with higher rainfall in the previous weeks created perfect conditions for area flooding. The water came in so quickly that we scrambled to get everything we could off of the floor and move our cars to higher ground. We ended up with 5” of water in our house for about an hour and a half. Outside the water was higher, as you can see in the video. Luckily the tide goes back out, so we didn’t have standing water in our home for very long. The neighbors were great, had shop vacs, dehumidifiers, and heaters going quickly after the water receded. I’m thankful to live in such a great community. As soon as the water receded, we had friends and neighbors offering help.

Appliances don’t really like salt water, so we had to replace our washer and dryer, refrigerators, and freezer! Along with all of the other neighbors near us, whose appliances were ruined. We did send all appliances from our neighborhood to a recycler to salvage what he could. Lessons learned, keep important documents and photos up high or in plastic bins. Anything that could be destroyed by water, should be up high. I did have to throw away old letters and other memories that were in a filing cabinet that didn’t survive the flood. These tips sound obvious, and now I do realize that even though we’ve heard it doesn’t happen often, I feel better being prepared, and maybe flood insurance isn’t a bad idea! We did add flood insurance and with permits in hand, hope to build a home 4’ off the ground later this year!

We were lucky that we didn’t suffer much damage to our current living quarters. Pine walls and blown-in insulation make for strong walls that are hard for water to penetrate. Also, we have vinyl flooring which did pretty well. All in all, we are thankful that we didn’t suffer much damage, only time cleaning up after. And, the expense of all new appliances.

The Samish Island board hosted a Skagit County Commissioner’s meeting on flood preparedness and what the County is doing to help us out. They are trying to get funding to find a fix that would keep the island, which is really a peninsula from flooding and being closed off to travel on and off the island. Before we moved here, I heard that flood waters had kept the island closed off to traffic for about 4 days. This time it was only about 6 hours before the water went down and people were able to drive on and off the island again.

With Spring finally here, I breathe a sigh of relief that we won’t have to think about king tides until the Fall! Besides the possibility of flooding, I wouldn’t choose to live anywhere else. I love to walk the beach and enjoy the crabbing season in the summer. Not too far from Lummi Island where the shrimping is also great and we have a few oyster companies on the island! Our neighbors are great at catching salmon, so we have a lot of fresh seafood in the summer! We are very blessed to have found a home here and choose to celebrate the positives.

If you do live in a flood zone, always be prepared. Keep insurance policies and important papers in a safe place. Take videos and photos of the valuables in your home and of course, make sure that they are kept in a place where they won’t get damaged! Check every room to make sure that valuables and anything that could be damaged are out of the way as well. We ended up building risers to put our appliances on. Try to also have an extra supply of any prescription medications taken on a regular basis. We also keep extra food storage in case we are ever cut off, as there aren’t any stores on the island. Also recommended to have a first aid kit in your home and car. Along with extra food, bottled water is another great thing to have on hand. Make sure to discard any food that has come into contact with flood water. Canned food is usually okay, just make sure to wipe down the cans if they came into contact with the water.

After the flood, we were fortunate enough to have dehumidifiers and portable heaters on hand. It is very important to get your home dried out as quickly as possible. There are professional companies that offer that service as well. It is also a good idea to wear gloves when cleaning up after. If you are on a well and it is flooded,  your tap water should be considered unsafe to drink. Septic systems should not be used with standing water around them. The ground below is unable to absorb water from sinks and toilets. Once the water has receded, it is a good idea to have well water checked.

My hope is that we don’t see those levels of water again for years, although we will make preparations to protect what we have just in case. Building retaining walls until we can get our contractor to get our home built, which will be very exciting!