Let us begin with a few words of caution about the 2019 Atlantic Hurricane Season. Prepare for the worst and hope for the best. Know your flood risk to prevent uninsured losses, minimize unwarranted expenses, and protect the value of your property. Experts predict a 2019 season, June 1 through November 30, of “near-normal” activity: […]
From the headlines to your bottom line, this edition of Flood Risk News & Notes includes another extension of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP); an increase in flood insurance premium rates; flood map changes in more than 70 communities around the country; and a reminder about elevation certificates. Below you will find a summary […]
FEMA’s release of revised flood insurance rate maps includes 42 communities in seven states: Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, New York, Oregon, Texas, and Washington. Many flood map updates place homes and buildings in a Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA), also known as a high-risk flood zone. A flood map reflects a geographic area -not individual property […]
The month of December is traditionally a busy month, and it appears that the FEMA elves have worked overtime to release revised flood insurance rate maps for more than 100 communities in 10 states: Colorado, North Dakota, Utah, New Jersey, Kentucky, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Georgia, and Louisiana. The new maps place many homes and […]
On November 3, 2017, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) released revised flood insurance rate maps for select communities in three states: New York, Pennsylvania, and Iowa. The new maps place many homes and buildings in a Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA), also known as a high-risk flood zone. A flood map reflects a geographic […]
Flood risk awareness is more than an observation. It is a proactive strategy to protect and increase the value of your property. Mother Nature’s flooding fury was not particularly kind last year. In fact, 2016’s flood events clinched an unwelcome place in the history books as detailed by USA TODAY in the story: U.S. Had […]
The month of August is not particularly kind to the state of Louisiana. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina and a failed levee left a trail of devastation. Eleven years later, this month, a no-name storm delivered an unrelenting rainfall resulting in flash flood emergencies, an overtopped levee, and widespread flooding throughout southern Louisiana. The Red Cross […]
The 2016 hurricane season officially starts June 1, and the forecast calls for 12 named storms, five hurricanes, and two major hurricanes. If the spring storms that crippled the Houston (TX) region are any indication of Mother Nature’s volatility, we can only hope for the best and plan for the worst. Now is the time […]
Last month in Houston, TX, torrential rains dumped more than 15 inches in some areas. The following screen capture illustrates the fury of flood warnings in the region on April 18. The severe weather resulted in massive flooding, impassable roads, citizen evacuations, closed schools and crippled businesses. According to local reports, April’s relentless downpour will […]
By now, given Mother Nature’s wrath over the past year, you’ve no doubt heard plenty of references to 100-year flood events, 500-year flood events and 1,000-year flood events. The description of flooding by the likelihood of occurrence in a geographic area is a predictive measure, commonly used by those in the scientific, emergency management and […]