Flood

Learn how to prevent and recover from devastating floods in SimCity 2000. Discover the causes, best defenses like dikes, and cleanup strategies to protect your city.

Hey there! So, you've noticed some blue water sloshing around your city and buildings disappearing? That's what we call a flood in SimCity 2000. It's a bit of a bummer, but don't worry, it's usually manageable. Floods are pretty random, but they tend to happen more when the weather's wet, especially if you've got rivers, oceans, or even just ponds near your city. Interestingly, roads and trees seem to be ignored by the floodwaters – they stay put! I used to think trees were some kind of natural barrier, but nope, they don't actually stop the water.

A city that's completely dry won't randomly flood, but you can totally cause one yourself if you're feeling mischievous. The absolute best way to keep your city safe is by building dikes. Think of them as little raised walls of land right along your coastlines. Just one level of elevation is usually enough to make those floodwaters bounce right off. Keep in mind, if you've got seaports, they're always at risk because they have to be at sea level, so make sure those areas are well-protected with dikes.

Now, what if you don't have dikes built up, or a flood sneaks up on you? You can try using your fire stations and police departments to create a sort of barrier. However, this is only really effective if you have a ton of them. Otherwise, you'll only be able to save a handful of your most important buildings, not really reduce the overall damage to your city.

Once the floodwaters have done their thing, cleaning up isn't too painful. After the flood recedes, just go ahead and rebuild any power lines that got wiped out, along with any buildings that were destroyed. Your zones should then start to recover on their own.