By MATT PIKE
St. Joseph Post
New flood insurance maps for St. Joseph and Buchanan County have been updated by FEMA, and officials are encouraging everyone to review the new maps.
And it will have an impact in south St. Joseph.
Chief Building Official and Flood Plain Administrator for St. Joseph Jim Haake says on the flood maps there are two zones, Zone A which requires flood insurance, and Zone B which does not.
Haake uses the flooding in the south end of St. Joseph as an example, saying that when those floods occurred, the south end was a Zone B.
"There was no requirement for flood insurance on the south end, and so when that flood happened there was no, you know most of the residents did not have flood insurance," Haake tells KFEQ/St. Joseph Post.
And Haake says being a Zone B also affected the south end at the federal level.
"It didn't kick in any of the federal, kind of grant programs that are there for flood mitigation," Haake explains.
Under the new maps areas of the south end will be changed to Zone A, meaning some residents will be required now to get flood insurance.
Buchanan County and city officials encourage everyone to review the new maps to learn about some of the changes.
Buchanan County Emergency Manager Bill Brinton says these maps have been in the works for 10 years now, stemming from the major flood in 2011.
"These maps were based upon the 2011 flood, because it was one of the largest ones in Buchanan County's history," Brinton says. "And so, that's when FEMA decided that the original maps were from 1983 and they needed to be updated."
The 90-day open appeal period for the new flood maps began on February 17th.
Haake says it takes scientific data and research for a successful appeal to FEMA, but comments can be submitted to his office.
Haake says that while the appeals process isn't just a formality because it is open, there has been plenty of research put into these maps to make them accurate.
"They have done the homework, they've been doing it, Stantec is the company that makes the maps that's who FEMA has kind of contracted out for the map making," Haake says. "And they've been doing this all over the country, and so they've really got a grasp."