Why does the flood barrier float?

The FloodBreak passive flood barrier is actually a buoyant panel constructed of hollow aluminum extrusions. The extrusions are designed to be structural while also providing excellent flotation. Additionally, the extrusions are chambered so that even if an area of the panel is compromised, the overall panel will still float. This is similar to the design of a ship’s hull, where bulkheads protect the ship even if the hull is locally damaged.

As the floodwater fills the gate pan, the hydrostatic pressure lifts the flood barrier and continues to raise it as the floodwater continues to rise. The buoyant flood barrier floats on top of the water. There is no need for human intervention or power to deploy the FloodBreak Automatic Floodgate.  See How It Works

How much does the floating panel weigh?

The actual weight varies depending on the type of gate, size and any special coatings or surface treatments specified. We design the cross-section of the gate panel to ensure that the total weight is always less than the water it floats upon and include a factor of safety to ensure this. Every floodgate is certified by an independent professional engineer who ensures that the floodgate is designed to successfully deploy.

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FloodBreak passive floodgates are being installed as part of the IBWC Levee Flood Control project to raise those levees for FEMA accreditation.

The International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC) has responsibility for applying the boundary and water treaties between the United States and Mexico. It is rehabilitating 122 miles of Rio Grande flood control to comply with levee standards established by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

FloodBreak is supplying custom roadway floodgates at levee crossings all along the Rio Grande levee flood control project in Texas and New Mexico.

Passive Roadway floodgates are currently installed on major highways and bridge crossings at Mission TX, Ft. Hancock TX, Alamo TX, Pharr TX, Mercedes TX, Canutillo, TX and Sunland Park, NM.

 Learn more about the IBWC Flood Control projects 

The FloodBreak Roadway Gate is a fully-engineered system designed for continuous traffic service in open roadways.

In addition to meeting HS-25 specifications for vehicle loads, the system is specially coated for extreme wear conditions and is designed for long service life with heavy safety factors in the most demanding environments.

A FEMA funded flood mitigation that included a flood wall and 11 passive floodgates saved Lourdes Hospital.

FloodBreak Automatic Floodgates were deployed to help protect Lourdes Hospital when the Susquehanna River overflowed its banks and flooded Binghamton NY. Unlike the 2006 Flood that forced the hospital to evacuate patients, Lourdes was able to stay open in 2011 and provide important services.

The floodwall with passive floodgates, built with hazard mitigation funds from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and New York State, protected this vital property from floodwaters that devastated other parts of the city during Tropical Storm Lee. City officials estimated that as many as 2,000 buildings suffered flood damage from the storm.

“As we sat and watched the floodwaters rise and rise and rise, it was interesting. The floodwall itself worked magnificently, the gates operated as expected,” said David Scribner, who is the facilities management director at the hospital. The floodwaters came within 30” but never breached. Read the FEMA Mitigation Best Practices Story

Columbus Regional Hospital is now protected from future flooding thanks to hazard mitigation and a floodwall with 15 FloodBreak passive floodgates.

On June 7, 2008, Haw Creek, a small tributary, came out of its banks due to flash flooding in the northern part of the floodway. The unprecedented flooding quickly flooded Columbus Regional Hospital, Cummins Diesel, other businesses and numerous residential homes in the Haw Creek Flood Corridor.

Columbus Regional Hospital was forced to evacuate 157 patients as flooding knocked out primary and emergency electrical systems, boilers, chillers, and transport system.

A no-adverse-impact flood risk management approach was adopted by the city of Columbus, IN in response to catastrophic flooding in 2008. Detailed hydrologic and hydraulic modeling of the watershed was developed along with a plan for permanent mitigation of future flood damage both for facilities like Columbus Regional and the overall flood risk areas in the Haw Creek flooding corridor.

As a critical lifeline entity, Columbus Regional was allowed to undertake floodproofing measures that would not adversely impact other properties.

A 2,400 foot floodwall was built two feet higher than the 100 year flood elevation and included 15 passive FloodBreak floodgates at all entry points, which allow unimpeded access by vehicles and pedestrians during dry times, but automatically deploy without human intervention or power if flooding occurs.

Read why the Columbus Regional Hospital flood mitigation was chosen as a FEMA mitigation best practices story.

FloodBreak will present passive flood barrier technology to the Ministry of Health at the IMECD Flood Seminar in Hanoi, Vietnam on October 30, 2012

FloodBreak is working closely with hospital design and construction companies in Vietnam to protect hospitals and medical universities from flood damage.  As the leading provider of passive flood control solutions, At the Institute of Medical Equipment and Construction Design seminar, FloodBreak will educate the various stakeholders on the benefits of passive flood barrier systems and the proven performance of FloodBreak Automatic Floodgates.  Seminar attendees will include Ministry of Health personnel including representatives from Medical Equipment, Diagnostics and Medical Environment Management.  Leading Design and Consulting companies, hospital contractors, private investors and Project Management Board members will also attend.

The Seminar will also include presentations from ASTEC, a leading application technology company.

FloodBreak represents a revolutionary change in traditional flood control measures. The passive, automatic flood barrier system provides permanent and virtually invisible flood protection without human intervention or power.

FloodBreak Automatic Floodgate in Action

Every FloodBreak flood barrier system is tested and certified by an independent engineer

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FloodBreak presented flood mitigation technology solutions at the National Aerospace Organization (NAO) conference in November, 2012 in Cocoa Beach FL.  The conference: Protecting Military Airbases & Commercial Airports from the Destructive Forces of Nature and was designed to help military airbases or municipal and regional airports protect their facilities, aircraft, personnel, and assets against the destructive forces of nature including hurricanes and flooding.

Representatives from general and commercial aviation, municipal and regional airports, military airbase representatives and military civil engineering project managers attended the event.

FloodBreak demonstrated its passive flood mitigation technology with a demonstration trailer where viewers could see the passive flood barrier lifted by the hydrostatic pressure from the floodwater.

Learn more about the conference and the NAO by watching the video featuring Colonel John D. Thomas, U.S. Air Force (Ret.) President, National Aerospace Organization.

FloodBreak Roadway Gates are a cost effective way to raise levees that must extend across roads and highways to meet FEMA accreditation requirements.

Looking west on US 83 Bridge across the Floodway

FloodBreak completed installation of passive Roadway Gates to connect raised levees along the Hidalgo County Floodway. This was a cost effective alternative for the IBWC instead of raising the bridge or creating road humps on each side.  The levees were raised to meet new FEMA levee accreditation requirements. Read more about the IBWC Flood Control Project.

Looking across the Floodway from the elevated West Levee

FloodBreak Roadway Gates are used at bridge entrances to connect the newly raised levee and meet new FEMA levee accreditation requirements.

This is the third bridge that uses the automatic FloodBreak Roadway Gates instead of raising the bridge.  The Borderland Bridge in Canutillo, TX and the Country Club Bridge in Sunland Park, NM had the passive flood barrier system installed earlier this year.

The passive flood barrier system is installed beneath grade at the bridge entrances and connects the levee at the designed levee height to meet the requirements for FEMA accreditation.

Fully passive, the floodgates are automatically lifted by the floodwaters without human intervention or power during a flood event but return to  their lowered, hidden location when the floodwaters recede. This allows IBWC to meet the new levee elevation  but not have to allocate resources to manually close floodgates or deploy temporary demountable systems.

FloodBreak will demonstrate its passive flood barrier technology to the Bay Area Flood Protection Agencies Association in Livermore, CA, on February 21, 2013.

FloodBreak is working closely with interested flood protection parties to share ideas, technologies, experiences and discuss joint flood control projects.  As the leading provider of passive flood control solutions, FloodBreak will educate the various stakeholders on the benefits of passive flood barrier systems and the proven performance of FloodBreak Automatic Floodgates.

The all-day conference will be held at the Zone 7 Water Agency in Livermore, CA.

Can’t get there but want to see how passive flood barrier technology works?

FloodBreak Automatic Floodgate in Action

Every FloodBreak flood barrier system is tested and certified by an independent engineer

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FloodBreak is the perfect flood control solution for hospital, corporate and university campuses.

FloodBreak has a range of automatic floodgates to meet the flood control requirements for your campus. Custom designed to fit flood openings, these passive flood barriers provide 24/7 flood protection, without the need for human intervention or power.

You won’t have to ensure that personnel are available around the clock to actively deploy flood prevention doors, logs or panels. FloodBreak passive flood barriers can also be covered to blend into the existing architecture while providing flood protection with the structural strength to support pedestrian, vehicular or heavy equipment traffic.

See how FloodBreak passive flood barriers are being used to protect campuses from flooding. Campus Solutions.

FloodBreak passive flood barriers provide permanent flood protection and are virtually invisible with tile covering.

The City of Knoxville has been a participant in the FEMA National Flood Insurance Program since 1971. The program is for communities to identify and protect floodplains in order to reduce severe flooding and qualify for reduced flood insurance rates. The City of Knoxville defines the regulatory floodway as the 500-year flood, which is stricter than the national FEMA requirement of a 100-year floodway.

When a the City of Knoxville determined that a local restaurant renovation had to comply with their floodplain ordinance, the restaurant installed two FloodBreak Automatic Floodgates to ensure that they were protected to the 500-year flood elevation plus one foot of freeboard.  Since the restaurant was not open 24 hours, it was determined that passive flood barriers were needed to ensure flood protection particularly when personnel weren’t available to deploy active flood barriers.  The two passive floodgates – one installed outside a side door and one inside the main entrance –  were covered with tile to match the surrounding environment resulting in permanent, 24/7, flood protection that is almost entirely hidden.

The FloodBreak® passive flood barrier installed in 2008, once again protected Route 22 Honda, a Hillside, NJ Honda dealership, when flash floods came unexpectedly again this summer.  The FloodBreak Vehicle Gate deployed automatically. lifted by the fast rising floodwaters caused by a slow-moving thunderstorm that inundated  sections of Route 22 in Union County, NJ forcing road closure.  Fortunately, Route 22 Honda was protected from damage to vehicles parked in their underground garage, just as they were protected during two previous flood events.

The Honda dealer is no stranger to flooding as they have experienced floods in past years including in 2010 when their decision to install a FloodBreak Automatic Floodgate paid for itself when it protected their property and helped reduce insurance premiums.

Read about more FloodBreak saves

Architecturally integrated FloodBreak® passive automatic flood barriers protect Rosenberg Library.

The Rosenberg Library, a historic building on Galveston Island in Texas, was ravaged by Hurricane Ike in 2008 but now is fully restored and protected from future storms.  Today the many Texas treasures on display at the Rosenberg Library Museum, inside the Rosenberg Library, are protected by FloodBreak passive flood barriers as part of an overall hurricane proofing of the building. Damage was extensive as part of the building was under as much as 6 feet of floodwater at the height of Ike’s storm surge.

Two 7′ tall passive flood barriers from FloodBreak protect the bottom floor entrances to the 500 year flood elevation.

But you wouldn’t know it unless you looked very closely as they are covered by carpet and instead of the the standard aluminum wiper walls, they use polished concrete, stained to match the historic building architecture. Though hidden, they provide 24/7 flood protection and should another storm surge or flood occur, the floodwater will cause the buoyant floodgates to deploy and seal against the sidewalls.

The Rosenberg Library is the oldest public library in Texas in continuous operation. It holds about 7,500 items related to the history of Galveston and the Republic of Texas.  Hurricane Ike resulted in devastating damage but the library today is better than ever and protected against future storms.

The FloodBreak® Vent Shaft System is a versatile flood control product line that protects a range of ventilation openings above and below grade.

Initially designed as a flood control solution for the MTA, the closure device passively protects subway system vents from being inundated by localized street flooding.

In response to Sandy, The MTA asked FloodBreak to develop a 2nd generation closure device to protect against coastal storm surge for their vulnerable vent openings, particularly in lower Manhattan. It would only be used in a planned shutdown if a major storm like Hurricane Irene or Superstorm Sandy approached the city.

This system was recently tested for government leaders and featured in the Wall Street Journal.

Here’s the link: A Grate Fix for Flooding

The double–gated device is designed for 10’ pressure head, near 100% airflow during “rest” position and is deployable by single operator with special tool, a MTA requirement. It is simple by design, requiring no maintenance, no power and ready for quick deployment.

Once installed inside the ventilation shafts, the units will eliminate the need for the labor intensive and risky process previously used where MTA personnel covered sidewalk grates with plywood and sand bags.

FEMA P-936, Floodproofing Non-Residential Buildings, features two hospital flood mitigation projects with floodwalls and FloodBreak® passive flood barriers. The new publication is intended to assist local government officials, engineers, architects, and property owners involved in the planning and implementation of floodproofing retrofits. Both hospital mitigation projects were FEMA funded and used a combination of floodwalls and passive flood barriers to protect the lifeline institutions. The combination is an effective approach for hospitals as it provides the flood protection these critical institutions need to ensure that they can provide healthcare to their communities while also ensuring full access for patients and staff until a flood event is imminent. You can find the full publication on FEMA’s website.  . Go to FEMA website

FEMA issued a new Floodproofing Non-Residential Buildings publication  (FEMA P-936 ) to provide new information and guidance for planning and implementation of floodproofing retrofits. The passive floodgate technology used by FloodBreak has been proven in actual flood situations at over a dozen verified customer locations including many with multiple occurrences.

Contact us.

Two newly installed FloodBreak® passive automatic flood barriers protected a Dallas, TX condo garage from flooding during a recent storm.

Severe storms rolled through the Plains May 7, 2014 damaging homes, flooding roads and leaving at least two people injured. Heavy rain, as much as 5 inches in some areas, resulted in several people being rescued from the high waters, and flash flood emergencies were issued until the rainfall ended.

On one of those roads, two FloodBreak passive flood barriers deployed automatically, lifted by the rising floodwater, to protect the below grade garage. Parked cars were saved not to mention the expense of cleaning up the damage. The storm caught many building residents by surprise and some were not even aware that the flood barriers had deployed until they were alerted by neighbors. Flash flooding is often localized and can happen unexpectedly, without sufficent time to protect vulnerable openings.

See other FloodBreak Flood Saves

FloodBreak passive automatic flood barriers can be built to any design flood elevation.

Designed with tension members rather than stanchions or vertical stops, FloodBreak passive floodgates are modular in nature with each section self-supporting. As a result, there is no practical limit to gate height or width.

FloodBreak recently built its largest gate yet, a 50’ x 10.5’ passive automatic flood barrier for a NY customer. During a test, the barrier was successfully deployed without human intervention or power, lifted solely by the rising water. The gate was also raised by an optional lift system that operates independently to facilitate periodic maintenance or other needs for manually lifting.

Structural calculations were done by an independent engineer to verify that the gate would support the loads it could be subjected to during its useful life.

FloodBreak has built tall flood barriers for many customers.  Barriers can be used in floodwalls, service entrances or to protect pedestrian pathways.

FloodBreak passive automatic flood barriers provide the best of all worlds: permanent flood protection, full building access and architectural integration.

Many customers have chosen to use granite cladding, marble, stained & polished concrete or custom paint color instead of standard wiper walls. Any smooth surface can be used. Some have also covered the barriers with carpet, tile or pavers to further blend the embedded passive floodgate with the surrounding architectural features. Seen below are new installations at Crossway Publishing in Wheaton, IL & the LTA in Singapore along with long time FloodBreak customers.

For over a decade, FloodBreak® passive automatic flood barrier systems have been protecting people and property without human intervention or power across the U.S.  Based on it’s simple yet proven design, increasingly customers across the globe are choosing the passive system to protect critical assets.  A recent customer installation in New Zealand marks the first in that country though the response has been extremely positive and discussions with the project team will undoubtedly lead to more projects.

The FloodBreak vehicular flood barrier provides permanent protection yet remains hidden beneath grade until an actual flood event occurs, allowing unimpeded access.  Regardless of time of day and without need for personnel to be present, the floodgate will deploy automatically, lifted by the power of the rising floodwater.

FloodBreak passive automatic flood barriers are now protecting Mercy Medical Center in Cedar Rapids, IA & Monash Children’s Hospital in Melbourne, Australia

Protecting hospitals is a core application for FloodBreak flood barriers dating back to 2003 when the first FloodBreak floodgates were installed at MD Anderson Cancer in Houston, TX in the aftermath of catastrophic flooding from TS Allison. The number of passive barriers at the world renowned cancer center now totals 30 includng replacement of many previously installed active swing gates that were difficult to close and vulnerable to human error.

The growing list of hospitals includes Columbus Regional Hospital in Columbus, IN & Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Binghamton, NY, both of which are included in FEMA Mitigation Best Practices stories.

• Learn about FloodBreak FEMA Mitigation Best Practices
• Learn about FloodBreak Hospital Solutions

Mercy Medical Center recently had seven passive automatic flood barriers installed at hospital entrances. Like much of Cedar Rapids, they were flooded in 2008 and were forced to evacuate patients.  Patients and staff are now protected 24/7.

Mercy also looked to architecturally integrate the barriers incorporating their granite cladded walls into the design and covering the barriers with carpeting in vestibules.