A colleague and her husband bought their first house a year or so ago, spending most of their savings to do so.

They did just about everything according to my book. They bought a house that was in a great location, half way between his job and hers. They negotiated a reasonable price, took out a conventional 30-year fixed mortgage that either of them could handle if one of them became unemployed.

The house was in relatively good shape, requiring a lot of cosmetics but nothing that fell beyond what they could afford. Nothing that needed doing was so pressing that they could not delay undertaking it until they'd replenished their savings account.

Then, one Saturday, it rained several inches, and the river a few hundred yards from the bottom of their back yard filled their basement with eight feet of water and sewage, destroying the two-year heating system, their washer and dryer, and many of their possessions - even the ones that had been stored on the tops shelves of storage units.

Having the basement pumped out and cleaned cost them nothing, because they happen to live in a state that is so concerned about environmental issues that it provides the service at no cost to homeowners.

Replacing the heating system and the washer and dryer cost the couple thousands.

The out-of-state mortgage lender should have been aware that the house was in a floodplain, and should have required the couple to take out low-cost flood insurance under the National Flood Insurance Program as a condition of the mortgage, but did not.

Although the couple is contemplating what will likely be a costly lawsuit against the lender to recover the money for the heater and the laundry appliances, they remain stretched financially and stressed.

Although the vast majority of houses damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Katrina were in an area that could flood very easily, it is safe to say that a relatively small percentage of those homeowners had flood-insurance policies, even if mortgage lenders did what they were supposed to do.

A lot of the people affected by flooding were poor, and given the choice between feeding and clothing their families every day and preparing for the possibility of a flood with even a low-cost insurance policy, the choice, at least to them, was clear.

For those who had flood insurance, the job ahead is no less easy.

Here are some tips on how to file a claim from Matthew Forke of the Federal Emergency Management Agency's "FloodSmart" program:

Call the agent who handles your flood insurance. Have the following information when you call: the name of your insurance company, the policy number and a telephone number or e-mail address where you can be reached. Please keep your agent advised if your contact information changes. If you are still in a shelter or cannot be easily reached, please provide the name of a designated relative or point-of-contact who can reach you.

When you file your claim, ask for an approximate time frame during which an adjustor can be expected to visit your home so you can plan accordingly. An adjustor will work with you to calculate the value of the damage and prepare a repair estimate.

To make filing your claim easier, take photos of any water in the house and damaged personal property. If necessary, place these items outside the home. Your adjustor will need evidence of the damage and damaged items, including cut swatches from carpeting, curtains and chairs, for example, to help you prepare your repair estimate.

Make a list of damaged or lost items and include their age and value where possible. If possible, have receipts for those lost items available for the adjuster. Law officials may require the disposal of damaged items. If so, keep a swatch or other sample of the items for the adjustor.

If you have damage estimates prepared by a contractor, provide them to the adjustor since they will be considered in the preparation of your repair estimate.

Contact your insurance company if an adjustor has not been assigned to you within several days.

You'll need to begin the cleanup process as soon as the floodwaters recede, whether or not you handle some of it yourself or hire a contractor to do so. Some insurers hire firms with expertise cleaning up after natural and manmade disasters to assess the damage. These firms are typically authorized to begin the cleanup without having to wait for the check to arrive.

Such arrangements go a long way to preventing fraudulent claims and keeping cleanup costs under control.