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Home from vacation...time to leave again. Water Damage

Ah...getting back from vacation. Your weary bones are ready to get out of the car after this 700 mile road trip. Nothing like the feel of your own place to just "veg". Looking forward to walking through the door to your home domain. That was until you opened the front door and caught the first "whiff" of THE aroma. The aroma of sewage back-up. Your initial delight has turned into wanting to tell the family to get back into the car.

There is nothing that compares to coming home to have your major family investment reeking of raw sewage.
The basement is flooded and who knows how much water damage to expect. So what are your options to deal with this calamity? One of the first things to investigate is to look around the exterior of the home. Check for any electrical issues. (In fact...shut off electricity before inspecting anything.) But tread carefully...remember water and electricity do not mix well. (Hip waders are a big plus in these conditions. Also see if there may be standing water or has receded...possibly may need to call in an engineer to check out the structural integrity. And what about gas lines? Are they shut off too? Do you have any broken pipes or leaking pipes?
Southern parts of the country (South Carolina, North Carolina, Alabama...to name a few) have a propensity to flooding due to hurricane and flooding issues.

Ok now see about ventilating your basement if possible? (Some older homes may not have windows, but even having the basement door open can help relieve some of the noxious fumes.) When this procedure has been done as well as possible, it's time to start pumping our the water of the basement. Using a good pump, begin a slow process of removal thus allowing any potential settling issues to be watched for. (Do not use ags powered pumps on the inside of the house.) Usually it is good to allow a few days to remove the water...thus allowing for close observation of wall and floor stability as well as monitoring any outside standing water. Now that the water is out...the fun of removing sewage and mud happens. Remember to sanitize walls and floor after everything is removed. Admittedly these are basic steps, but they are important ones. Each home situation is somewhat different, so consider the subtleties of your domain.