Take care of your health after floods

Health risks from flooding

The health risks from floods include:

• bacterial infections
• loss of medicines
• mould
• contaminated floodwater
• contaminated food or water
• injuries
• animal bites from displaced animals
• mosquito-borne illnesses
• carbon monoxide poisoning from generators.

Protect your health

If you feel unwell or have been injured, seek medical care. If it’s an emergency, call 000. Lacerations and open wounds contaminated with flood water can become infected. Severe trauma-related infections can be life-threatening.

There are steps you can take to protect your health:

• Don’t leave your house until authorities advise it is safe.
• If you can’t keep refrigerated medicines cold in the fridge or in ice, safely discard them. If it is essential medicine, such as insulin, check with a doctor or pharmacist. Medicines Line (1300 633 424) can also answer questions about medicines.
• Throw out medicine and food that has been in contact with floodwater.
• If the power has been out for a prolonged period, don’t eat the food from your fridge or freezer.
• Contact your local council to check whether the local water supply is contaminated. If in doubt, boil all drinking water before consuming it.
• Before going outside or cleaning up, put on
  • long pants
  • long sleeves
  • fully covered shoes
  • gloves
  • glasses
  • a P2 mask if you have it.
• When cleaning up, don’t touch your face, and wash your hands regularly and thoroughly.
• Don’t walk through floodwater or mud, as it could be contaminated with sewage.
• Disinfect cuts and scrapes immediately and regularly. Seek medical care if you’re injured.
• Watch out for displaced animals including insects, snakes, rats and spiders.
• Protect yourself against mosquitoes.
• Ventilate your home to help prevent mould.
• If you need clean-up assistance, seek help from your local or state government or State Emergency Service (SES).

Follow the advice of your local and state governments and emergency services. Your local ABC radio is a reliable source of information.

Accessing health care

If healthcare services are disrupted in your area, you can find a health service through: 

• staff in evacuation centres
• healthdirect’s health service finder.

To speak with a registered nurse 24/7, call healthdirect on 1800 022 222. Depending on your symptoms, you may be connected virtually to a GP.

healthdirect can also connect you to your local Medicare Urgent Care Clinic.

If you need urgent help from police, fire or ambulance services, call triple zero (000).

Getting medicines

If you have lost your prescription or medicines, contact your pharmacist or healthcare professional as soon as possible.

Pharmacists can call your doctor to make sure you can still get the prescription medicines you need. In some cases, you can get your medicines without a script.

Read more about getting medicines after a flood. 

Mental health support

Experiencing a natural disaster can be extremely stressful. Support is available – see a full list of support services. 

More information

For more information and support, see:

• the Australian Government disaster recovery assistance
• healthdirect’s floods and cyclones advice page
• the Department of Health, Disability and Aged Care’s natural disaster support page
• Queensland’s flood page
• Victoria’s flood page.