Facing The Floods: Today And In The Future 

Release Date: June 15, 1999
Release Number: 1277-31

» More Information on Iowa Severe Storms, Flooding and Tornadoes

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Are you a potential flood victim? Floods can occur anywhere, but some places are more at risk than others.

Areas likely to be flooded are called Special Flood Hazard Areas; they are nicknamed the "100-year floodplain." Your local government maintains maps that show the Special Flood Hazard Areas near you.

Find out where your home is in relation to the high risk area by locating your home on one of those maps. If it's in a Special Flood Hazard Area, NOW is the time to minimize your flood risk. Remember: it's not the distance you are from the water's edge, it's your elevation above it that counts.

If your home is located in a high flood risk area, you have three options:

  1. FLOODPROOF YOUR HOME
  2. RELOCATE YOUR HOME
  3. MOVE TO A NEW HOME

Building codes, floodplain management policies, local regulations, and personal preferences will influence your decision. Choosing any option may mean compromise. Choosing the right option requires research, planning, contacting local officials, and assessing trade-offs.

Floods take a heavy toll on everyone-the homeowner and community alike. The homeowner may lose his home and possessions; he may put his and his family's lives at risk. The +ommunity must maintain costly search and rescue services, just in case. When the floods come, the rescuers must risk their lives to save yours. Be part of the solution, not part of the problem.

Keeping your home in a floodplain requires special protective measures to minimize or prevent damage when the flood arrives.

We have good reasons for living where we do: close to family; close to friends; good schools; close to work; the right neighborhood. If staying in the floodplain is the choice for you, you must floodproof.

Before Starting, contact your local building officials to make certain that your plans conform to current building codes and, if applicable, floodplain regulations. If your home has been flooded, some floodproofing projects may not be optional.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) can provide property owners with detailed information on moving furnaces, hot water heaters, electrical panel boxes, and appliances out of harm's way. Other examples of floodproofing include:

Purchase Flood Insurance. If your community participates in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) you can purchase flood insurance. It is affordable. Make sure you get coverage for both the structure and its contents. Renters can buy coverage for their possessions, too. Contact any insurance agent who offers homeowner's coverage.

To obtain more information, contact your local government, your local emergency manager, and your local building officials. Check out the following FEMA publications. They are available free by writing to FEMA Publications, P.O. Box 70274, Washington, DC 20024 or by calling 1-800-480-2520.

FEMA # 234-Repairing Your Flooded Home
FEMA # 247-Against the Wind
FEMA # 312-Homeowner's Guide to Retrofitting: Six Ways to Protect Your House From Flooding
FEMA # 320-Taking Shelter from the Storm: Building A Safe Room Inside Your House

Relocating a home to higher ground can save it from flood damage.

A comfortable home is like an old friend-we want to keep it forever. And the cost of building a new home may be out of reach. Surprisingly, physically moving your current home to a site outside the mapped Special Flood Hazard Area may be affordable, and you may be eligible for financial assistance from the government-especially if your home has already been flooded.

Floods are the most common natural disaster, causing millions of dollars in damages each year. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), in cooperation with the state of Iowa, is making a concerted effort to remove structures at risk from flooding. The relocation or acquisition of primary residences is the state's highest flood protection priority.

If relocation is your choice for flood protection, contact and work with your local government officials. Flood protection projects, which include relocating homes, are developed at the local level and submitted to the state for approval under FEMA's Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. Projects anywhere in the state may be eligible for government funding, if money is available.

If you have been flooded, and the cost of repairs exceeds 50 percent of the structure's pre-flood fair market value, and you have flood insurance, talk to your insurance agent about filing a claim under ICC-Increased Cost of Compliance.

Once approved, the project competes with other projects across the state for funding. If funding is approved, a combination of federal (75 percent) and non-federal (25 percent) money may be available to help you relocate.

If government money is not available, and you have to foot the bill yourself, compare the cost of relocating your home with the cost of losing it and all its contents to a flood. Relocating may be less expensive than you think.

To obtain more information, contact your local government, your local emergency manager, and your local building officials.

Moving to a different home which is located outside the Special Flood Hazard Area is the quickest and easiest way to protect you and your family from becoming flood victims.

If your home is in a Special Flood Hazard Area, commonly known as a floodplain, and hasn't been flooded, it's a disaster waiting to happen. If you have been flooded, you know the heartache and pain Mother Nature can cause.

If you want to move to a safer location, you should do it as quickly as possible. If you have been flooded and wish to move, government funds may be available to offset some or all of your moving costs. Even if you haven't been flooded, but do live in a Special Flood Hazard Area, you may be eligible for a buyout.

Contact and work with your local government officials. Flood protection projects, like buyouts, are developed at the local level and submitted to the state for approval under the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. FEMA, in cooperation with the state of Iowa, is making a concerted effort to remove structures at risk from flooding. The relocation or acquisition of primary residences is the state's highest flood protection priority.

Once approved, the project competes with other projects across the state for funding. If funding is approved, a combination of federal (75 percent) and non-federal (25 percent) money will be made available to your community to purchase your property, demolish the structure and clear the lot, which will then be maintained in perpetuity as a green space.

To obtain more information, homeowners should contact local government, the local emergency manager, and local building officials. The following publication is available free to state and local officials. Officials can obtain it by writing to FEMA Publications, P.O. Box 70274, Washington, DC 20024 or by calling 1-800-480-2520. FEMA # 317 Property Acquisition Handbook for Local Communities

Last Modified: Tuesday, 16-Dec-2003 13:01:36