In apost below I wrote of the problems with flood protection including the National Flood Insurance Program or NFIP. ViaSlabbed (a great blog BTW) is an article informing us that few people in the Midwest had flood insurance through the NFIP. (NFIP provides flood insurancebecause most homeowners insurance doesn’t cover flooding).
In that article, titled“NFIP Expects Few Claims From Midwest Flooding” a spokesperson for the NFIP reported there were“fewer than 700 policies” in force in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Here is an explanation…
Much
of the flooding, Mr. Kinerney noted, has gone over the levees and other
antiflood measures designed to prevent flooding. Because those measures
had been put in place, however, those living behind them were not
required to purchase flood coverage.“We
try and we try and we try” to encourage homeowners to think about their
flood risks even if they aren’t required to purchase coverage, he said.
“A lot opt not to worry about it until after something happens.”
The spokesperson “said much of the expense related to the recent flooding will be borne out in disaster assistance.” In other words the NFIP will not experience the financial problems it did after Katrina when it went$20 billion into debt paying claims.
Obviously quite a few people on the Gulf Coast had flood insurance. But that isn’t the point other than it ought to be tucked into your memory bank for when wingnuts bitch about Katrina.
No the point is what I was outlining in the post below. The shorter version of which is–Flood protection and flood insurance is a holy freaking mess. Given“flooding is the nation’s #1 natural disaster”that ought to be a concern to all of us.