1,372 Repetitively Flooded Properties In MD w. Nat. Flood Insurance; 13% Have Made Any Improvements

[hatrack]

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For most residents whose homes face any amount of flood risk, the federal flood insurance program is the only way to protect against losses when disaster hits. It was established within FEMA in 1968 as a backstop insurer after many private companies dropped flood zone coverage because it was too costly. But because it’s a government program, rather than a business, even the most flood-prone properties can file claims again and again. Historically, repetitively flooded properties have accounted for 1 percent of flood insurance policies, while estimates of their share of the claims paid range from about a fifth to a third.

As climate change makes floods more frequent and storms more potent, the insurance program’s proponents and critics agree it’s broken. Its losses have mounted so much that in 2017, after hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, Congress had to step in to cover $16 billion of its debt. Yet FEMA still owed the U.S. Treasury more than $20 billion in flood insurance claims as of March 2020.

In Maryland, the situation is as unsustainable as anywhere. As of November 2020, there were 1,342 repetitively flooded properties. Meanwhile, only 173 — about 13 percent — have made improvements to prevent losses. Such improvements often include raising a building several feet off the ground, installing flood vents in foundations, or elevating water heaters, furnaces and air conditioning units. Another prevention against repeated losses is using government money to buy flood-prone properties and tear them down. But that’s a strategy that, in even the most flood-weary parts of Maryland, many consider too extreme.

Maryland leaders acknowledge more action is needed. They said they hope the recent Coastal Adaptation Report Card, which the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science released this year, will help spur it. The report card gave the state a B-minus overall for its planning and preparations around coastal flooding. But the state received failing grades for two categories measuring risks to repetitively flooded properties and to critical facilities, including police and fire stations and hospitals.

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/when-waters-keep-rising-and-rising-in-maryland/2022/03/31/8bfc6408-af09-11ec-bc8f-de3070172439_story.html

[I_UndergroundPanther]

1. port deposit floods a lot

all the buildings have stained in flood marks.