If your home is affected by flooding the council can give assistance in some circumstances, but there is no guaranteed service.

Advice for residents and businesses

Two common types of flooding may occur in our area - major rivers overflowing and surface water flooding. Surface water flooding can happen for a number of reasons, such as heavy rainfall, blocked drains or overflowing rivers or streams.

We work closely with the Environment Agency, Hampshire County Council, Southern Water and local communities to provide a coordinated response to incidents of flooding.

What should I do if I experience flooding?

If you experience a flooding emergency you should focus on the safety of yourself and your family.

Who should I call?

Dial 999 if it is an emergency and you or someone else is in danger.

  • If the flooding is coming from a main river, contact the Environment Agency on 0800 80 70 60
  • If the highway is flooded, call Hampshire County Council on 0300 555 1388
  • If water is coming from a public sewer or water supply, call Southern Water on 0330 303 0368

If in doubt call East Hampshire District Council on 01730 266551 (including after hours) as they can direct you to the right service for you.

Sandbags

East Hampshire District Council does not have a statutory duty to provide sandbags and there is no guaranteed service available, particularly out of hours. The Council has a limited supply of sandbags and resource to deliver, these are for use in emergency situations, we will try to help if we can but have limited resource to deliver. The distribution of sandbags will be carried out on a priority needs and vulnerability basis if we have resource available and if you are unable to help yourself. 

We advise residents who are aware that their property may be at risk of flooding to purchase their own sandbags in advance, as it is the responsibility of the owner/occupier to do everything they possibly can to protect their property where there is a known risk of flooding.

When using sandbags, put a large sheet of heavy-duty plastic between them and the wall of your house. This makes for a better defence than sandbags alone.

If your house is under threat and you have no sandbags, you can improvise by using the following:

  • Grow bags are the right shape and light enough to be easily carried
  • Bin liners or plastic carrier bags filled with soil dug from your garden
  • Soil wrapped up in a bath towel
  • You can buy sandbags from your local Builders Merchant or DIY Store

Be prepared  

It is important that property owners and businesses act if you live in places that are at risk of flooding. Being prepared will make things much easier if your home is ever flooded. Please see Environment Agency ‘Prepare for flooding’ for more information.

The National Flood Forum, a charity to help, support and represent people at risk of flooding, also have lots of resources which you may find helpful. For example, putting together a Flood Kit ‘Grab bag’ is a key way of minimising the risks and surviving the worst, if you choose to stay in your home or are evacuated to a rest centre.

Find out how to reduce your flood risk and the impacts of flooding at your property.

For more information on the flooding of major rivers where you live and to find out if your house is at risk from flooding, please visit the Environment Agency flood maps. You can also sign up for flood warnings. 

Report it

Flooding should be reported to help agencies plan for and alleviate future incidents.  

Hampshire County Council guidance contains more details.

Also interested in

Councils role in an emergency