We don’t have numbers yet on how many Washington homes and businesses have experienced flooding. Emergency officials say it’s too early to even guess until flood waters recede. For people starting to clean up, though, the safety issues are serious. Flood waters can bring sewage and bacteria, which cause mold and other hazards.

To find out more about what’s ahead in the recovery process, KUOW’s Kim Malcolm talked to reporter Monica Nickelsburg.

This interview has been edited for clarity.

Kim Malcolm: We’ve heard directly from several families impacted by recent flooding, but thousands more around the state are either still out of their homes or in flood recovery mode. Can affected property owners expect to get help from insurance?

Monica Nickelsburg: Unfortunately, most typical homeowners and renters insurance policies don’t cover this type of flooding. Usually, to get help with those repairs you would need to have a separate flood insurance policy.

And do we know how many properties in Washington are covered by flood insurance?

It’s about 50,000 homes and businesses in Washington that have flood insurance between the program that FEMA administers and the private market. That’s about half the number of people who were advised to evacuate at the height of the flooding. It doesn’t mean all of those homes were damaged, but we just don’t know at this point. In general, experts say that a lot more people should have flood insurance than do.

Is there clarity on what resources are available to property owners who don’t have flood insurance?

It’s a little bit of a wait and see. It really depends whether President Trump signs off on a federal disaster declaration and at the same time authorizes FEMA to provide individual assistance to households. That would be different than the federal emergency that’s already been declared, which is really more about providing lifesaving first responder emergency relief from FEMA.

Right now, the counties that have a lot of flooding are running surveys to assess the damage. Governor Ferguson will use the data collected in those surveys to make his case for a federal disaster declaration. So, if you’re a property owner who has damage, you should go to your county website and fill out this survey.

How about any resources available at the local level?

Damaged properties might also be able to get relief from state and local property taxes. County websites have details on that. And even though homeowners insurance doesn’t typically cover flood damage, your auto insurance might. If your car was damaged, you should check your policy.

What do officials recommend you do to document the damage to your home or business?

They’re recommending taking lots of photos and videos, and keeping all of the receipts that you get for repairs and cleanup you hire out. The county surveys have detailed lists of everything that should be documented with photos and videos to support the claims.

Listen to the interview by clicking the play button above.