New web pages show Macon-Bibb flood risk
By Jim Gaines, The Macon Telegraph | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
Want to know how much it will cost to insure against flood damage?
Now you can find out in a moment, through two web addresses announced Monday at
The Georgia Silver Jackets, a collaboration of federal and state agencies working on reducing flood danger, showed off the new maps. They've worked with
A public meeting will be scheduled later to talk about making the Ocmulgee levee more secure and how to cut local flood insurance rates.
"We found out firsthand in 1994," he said. That summer the remnants of Tropical Storm Alberto caused the
Now property owners can check an online map to see exactly how close potential floods will come, enabling residents and area decision-makers to gauge their exposure, said Col.
"Everyone lives in a floodplain. It's just a matter of what your risk is," said
Developers use predictions of 100-year and 500-year floods to decide where to build. Not only are the new maps more accurate and up-to-date than earlier predictions, but they also will show current rainfall totals so emergency responders know where to send help in big floods, he said.
Shillock said property doesn't have to be within a high-risk area for owners to buy flood insurance. Any property can be insured, partially or fully, with lower-risk areas usually requiring low payments, he said.
The current
But
The river's official flood stage is 18 feet. On Monday, the Ocmulgee stood at 5.71 feet as it passed
The community can do a number of things to cut flood insurance rates, such as planning for better stormwater management, maintaining streams and leaving green space undeveloped, Reichert said. As he occasionally has before, Reichert mentioned the possibility of creating a stormwater utility to pay for that work.
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