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Hurricane Floyd caused
major damage across North Carolina, but at least one good thing resulted: the State
realized it needed to revamp its flood plain maps. With about 55% of
North Carolina Flood Maps at least 10 years old and 75% at least 5 years
old, the existing maps had limited effectiveness.
In fact, since 1989, there have been 14
federally-declared disasters in the State. An accurate determination of
risks from hurricanes and floods is vital for citizens, property owners
and communities. Some of the expected benefits include:
- Accurate data for communities and
property owners to use in making siting and design decisions when
rebuilding after flooding disasters, when building new structures
and infrastructures and when retrofitting existing structures
- Update flood hazard data for use in
planning floodplain management that will dramatically reduce
long-term flood loses in the State
- Updated flood data to alert those at
risk of flooding to the need for flood insurance
- Faster and cheaper updating of
National Flood Insurance Program Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs)
- Current, updated base maps and
digital format of FIRMs for precise flood risk determinations
- Compatibility of FIRMs with
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for analysis and planning
- Digital GIS online access to all
maps 24 hours a day
- Additional value for engineering and
planning applications such as site design, stormwater management,
transportation planning and design, and spill response
$60 Million Statewide
Undertaking the task of updating this data is huge...and
expensive. In fact, the total estimated cost for the State is $60. Phase
I includes developing updated topographic and flood hazard data and
producing National Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMS) for the six eastern
river basins that cover roughly half of the State. The cost: $35
million. North Carolina has allocated $25 million and FEMA has
contributed an additional $4.5 million.
Through the Federal Emergency Management
Agency's (FEMA) Cooperating Technical Partner initiative, North Carolina
has been designated as the first Cooperating Technical State (CTS). As
such, North Carolina will assume primary ownership and responsibility of
the National Flood Insurance Program Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs)
for all North Carolina communities.
Local, State and Federal Cooperation
In September of 2000, 22 Federal and local community
entities joined North Carolina and FEMA, agreeing to work together to
maintain accurate, up-to-date flood hazard data for the State. Besides
funding, some of the resources that State and FEMA need from other
Federal agencies includes:
- Digital elevation data
- Cross-elevation data for stream
channels, bridges, culverts, and coastal transects for engineering
modeling
- Base map data (digital orthophoto
quadrangles)
- Data about flood control structures
such as levees, dikes and dams
- Hydrographic and streamflow data
- Flood hazard data such as from
ongoing or recently completed
- Technical guidance on implementation
of advanced technologies, such as remote sensing and flood
forecasting
- Advice on designing and implementing
a state-of-the-art, on-line Information Management System
- Assistance in establishing technical
and data standards
Development of information on the
Roanoke River Basin is underway. When complete,
you can find the Roanoke River Basin Plan, Summary & Fact Sheet, a
PowerPoint presentation (that will be shown at
the county level) and other information at this web site:
http://www.ncfloodmaps.com/pubdocs/basin.htm
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Hurricane Floyd's
Damage according to the North Carolina Disaster Center
In North Carolina alone, Hurricane Floyd was responsible for: 51
deaths; 7000 homes destroyed; 17,000 homes uninhabitable; 56,000 homes
damaged; most roads east of I-95 flooded; Tar River crests 24 feet above
flood stage; over 1500 people rescued from flooded areas; over 500,000
customers without electricity at some point; 10,000 people housed in
temporary shelters; much of Duplin and Greene Counties under water;
severe agricultural damage throughout eastern NC; "Nothing since the
Civil War has been as destructive to families here," says H. David
Bruton, the state's Secretary of Health and Human Services...."The
recovery process will be much longer than the water-going-down process";
Wilmington reports new 24-hour station rainfall record (128 year record)
with 13.38 inches and over 19 inches for the event.
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