Flood Insurance News

As Floodwaters Recede in Southeast, Many Residences Remain Underwater

As floodwaters around Atlanta began to recede, residents were packing moving vans with furniture and commiserating about water-logged apartments. “I’m toast,” Penny Freeman, who moved into a first-floor apartment five days ago, said. “I don’t have a place to stay. …

Some Georgians Get Crash Course in Flood Insurance

David Bush had a sweeping view of the Chattahoochee River from his backyard in metropolitan Atlanta. When he returned to his house, the surging river was in his front yard, too. But he was fretting for another reason as he …

Losses in Georgia from Floods at $250 Million; Most Uninsured

Flooding across north Georgia over the past few days has caused an estimated $250 million in losses, as much as 80 percent of that likely uninsured, according to state Insurance Commissioner John W. Oxendine. Oxendine said that many of the …

Declarations

Not Wasting Time “I will not waste time with those who have made the calculation that it’s better politics to kill this plan than improve it.” —President Barack Obama, in a Sept. 9 speech before Congress outlining his plan for …

Environmentalists Say Flood Insurance Program Threatens Desert Riverbeds, Endangered Species

An environmental group is trying to slow development near ecologically fragile dry washes and desert riverbeds in Arizona by targeting the federal agency that provides the flood insurance essential to building there. WildEarth Guardians’ novel approach in its lawsuit against …

Louisiana Levee Rating Drop Would Trigger Flood Insurance Requirement

Northeast Louisiana officials are worried that federal authorities may “de-certify” the Ouachita River levee system. That could mean that virtually all Monroe property owners would be required to buy federal flood insurance. Tensas Basin Levee District officials discussed the issue …

Gulf Coast Construction ‘Woefully Inadequate’ to Survive Storm Flooding

Government minimum flood elevation requirements for properties vulnerable to storm surge throughout the Gulf Coast region are “woefully inadequate,” according to a new study of property damage caused by Hurricane Ike, which struck the Bolivar Peninsula near Galveston, Texas one …

Ike Study: Hurricane Storm Surge a Threat to More Coastal Properties

Government minimum flood elevation requirements for properties vulnerable to storm surge throughout the Gulf Coast region are woefully inadequate, according to a new study of property damage caused by Hurricane Ike, which struck the Bolivar Peninsula near Galveston, Texas, one …

Flood Insurance Program Sued in Arizona to Protect Species

An environmental group is trying to slow development near ecologically fragile dry washes and desert riverbeds in Arizona by targeting the federal agency that provides the flood insurance essential to building there. WildEarth Guardians’ novel approach in its lawsuit against …

Declarations

Coastal Caution “This is not a simple issue. It’s an issue that you’ve got to address with great caution.” —Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney telling an Alabama House of Representatives committee that the keys to holding down insurance premiums on …