We claim that, in The Netherlands, emergency management for flooding should be seen as an ‘add on’ to existing emergency planning. Therefore, some specific preparation is required to minimize loss of life and maximize the use of available information, resources and infrastructure. This booklet discusses this preparation based on the experiences of the NUWCReN network within the context of The Netherlands and other countries with limited budgets for flood preparedness and low risk perception of the public and limited urgency for preparation by decision makers.