2001 Winter Floods
-Disasters That Weren't-
Release Date: January 24, 2002
Release Number: R10-02-09
Seattle, W.A., January 24, 2002 - The Pacific Northwest is wet in winter - and prone to seasonal flooding and wind and rainstorms. The storms came but the disasters didn't! Images of flooded roads, snowy mountain passes and mudslides were aired nation-wide on network news, and local media provided hourly updates for "stricken" residents. But for the most part, when the rain clouds dispersed and river levels dropped, damage was minimal. According to FEMA Regional Director John Pennington, it was a classic case of effective mitigation at work.
"We've come a long way since the winter storms of '96 and '97 in terms of increased flood insurance subscribers, flood plain management, and community mitigation efforts," said Pennington. "I don't mean to trivialize the experiences of families and businesses that did indeed suffer from storm damage. And we can't forget that winter is officially less than a month old. But, so far - so good. The effects were local, and for the most part were dealt with - very effectively dealt with, locally."
Regional Mitigation Division Director Carl Cook concurs. "More than 15 percent of the total costs of previous years' Presidentially-declared disasters was given to the respective states for specific mitigation projects to reduce the costs of future disasters," said Cook. "Local jurisdictions bought structures subject to repeated flooding, removed the structures, and rezoned the areas as open land. Infrastructures were 'hardened' against floods, damaged structures were rebuilt to code or elevated above flood levels to reduce the likelihood of future damage, and flood maps were updated. Our region enters 2002 with robust mitigation measures in place."
Flood insurance is the best possible protection from flood losses. The number of National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) policyholders has grown to over 61,120 policies in Region 10 (Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington State) in the last three years.
Acquisition is one of the surest forms of floodplain management, and hundreds of structures have been bought out and removed since the '96 floods. Removal of structures from the floodplain means that those structures will never flood again - ever. Over 1000 flood-prone structures have been elevated above their 100-year flood levels - or acquired, throughout the Region.
ATTENTION RADIO STATIONS:
Today's FEMA Radio Network features FEMA Regional Director John Pennington discussing:
- Winter 2001 in the Pacific Northwest a disaster that wasn't.
- The best protection for flooding? FLOOD INSURANCE.
- Mitigation reduces damage in western Washington and Oregon.
- All-hazards mitigation initiatives in Region 10.
To access/record quotes, dial 1-800-323-5248. Pennington actualities are "filed" under "the latest on disaster recovery information." Punch "1" on your touch-tone phone. Canadian stations can call 1-202-646-4365.
Listen as Region X Director John Pennington discusses how past severe winter seasons led to better preperations for this year's severe winter season. (.wav ~14.6 MB)
Last Modified: Wednesday, 27-Aug-2003 17:28:30