As Hurricane Sandy barreled toward the East Coast in late October, meteorologist Tim Doggett swung into action, poring through the latest weather information and racing to enter data into a powerful computer program before losing power.
But Doggett wasn’t preparing a weather forecast. Working in a row of sand-colored cubicles in the Back Bay, Doggett and his colleagues were trying calculate the amount of damage the storm could cause, even before it made landfall. The final estimate: as much as $22 billion in insured losses, making it the one of the costliest US storms on record.
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Why is there no mention of FEMA? FEMA's untertaking to redraw the nation's flood zones seems most appropriate given the measurable and costly toll of rising tides, increased flooding, and severity of storms. However, something went terribly wrong in how the revised flood maps were rolled out, placing additional financial stress of property owners, many who are barley hanging on to their homes due to economic conditions. Communities "rubber stamped" the approval process adopting the revised flood maps, or risk forfeiting disaster releif funds for their community. FEMA underwrites ALL flood insurance policies. It appears that FEMA has created a new source of revenue by widening the flood zone circle at the expense of, and resulting in financial hardships to those suddenly deemed "in a flood zone". Banks and mortgage holding companies wasted no time serving up their "valued customers" in "force-placing" flood insurance policies costing thousands of dollars annually in most cases, and adding in the requisite added fees for themselves. Property owners must act quickly to hire professional services, costin thousands more to prove to the banks that their propery is either above elevation or not in a flood zone. I conclude that home ownership in America is no longer the great American dream of securty and community but increasing a liability to one's own independence.
Banks and mortgage holders had an opportunity to protect their "valued" customers by taking a stand to challenge the flood maps as inaccurate in many many cases...but too the low road again to of serving up their own customers, many of whom are clinging to their homes, thrusting them back into a new and unwarranted financial hardship.
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Thank you for bringing to light the challenges facing home owner with increasing insurance costs. Helpful posts re: force-placed flood insurance can be found here: http://everydaytipsandthoughts.com/according-to-fema-my-house-is-suddenly-in-a-flood-zone/
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How can anyone write an article like this without mentioning climate change? AIR Worldwide certainly takes it into account as a bit of googling shows but it didn't make its way into the Globe.