Safety Tips for Checking Your Irrigation Equipment After a Flood

July 14, 2020

Our climate has been unpredictable lately, and many farmers have seen their fields flood due to heavy winter and spring rains. As soon as those waters recede, many of us would like to get back to business—but it’s important that you check your Reinke irrigation equipment in Texas safely. The historic Midwest floods of 2019 were an excellent reminder that safety should be the highest priority when working the land.

Safety tips after a flood

Reinke has offered some safety tips for Texas farmers—read on to learn about how to handle a flood, and if you have questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to the staff at B&M Pump Irrigation Sales & Service, Inc. In addition to our custom-designed systems, parts and service, we can also advise you on the safest ways to keep your irrigation equipment in good working order:

  • Wait: For your own safety as well as the safe, functional operation of your irrigation equipment, wait for the flood waters to recede completely. Remember that flood water is often full of chemicals, human waste and debris—walking through the water could be quite dangerous to your health.
  • Call an irrigation equipment dealer: Talk to your irrigation equipment dealer, like B&M Pump Irrigation Sales & Service, Inc., to find out what you need to do next. In most cases, your irrigation dealer will come inspect your system to determine what needs to be done before power can be restored. Never inspect your system yourself—you could be risking electrocution and other safety hazards. Your irrigation inspector will know what kind of damage to look for and what to avoid when checking out your system. This will be particularly helpful for submitting a claim to your insurance company.
  • Find out if you need a permit to restore power: Your municipality may require you to get a permit before you can restore power to your automated irrigation system. Generally, your irrigation system dealer will know whether this is an area of concern, or how to find out.
  • Contact your insurance company: Finally, make sure you call your insurance company to file a claim immediately. Since claims can sometimes take a significant amount of time to process, you should get the ball rolling as soon as possible. Work with your insurance agent to create a thorough and detailed report of any flood damages you suffered—and if you’re reading this without having flood coverage in your plan, make sure you rectify that before the next round of rain and flooding begins.

This is a good time to check your insurance coverage and make sure that you have all of your important documents somewhere safe. Floods are a matter of “when,” not “if,” so brushing up on your flood safety tips will surely benefit you in the coming years.

Interested in having someone from B&M Pump Irrigation Sales & Service, Inc. educate you about Reinke products in Texas? Reach out to us today to learn more about what we can offer.

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