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Friday, Jul. 24, 1998
Houston gets most flood money
Texas No. 1 in receiving amounts over home's value
By PAULINE ARRILLAGA
Associated PressHOUSTON - Owners of a Houston-area home along the San Jacinto River valued at $114,000 have received $806,591 - more than seven times its worth - in flood insurance payments in the last 18 years.
In Grand Prairie, southwest of Dallas in the Trinity River floodplain, owners of a $187,000 home have collected $655,280 in flood insurance money over the same period.
Across the state, taxpayer dollars literally are going down the drain when it comes to insurance payments made to properties repeatedly damaged in floods, according to a study released Tuesday by the National Wildlife Federation, a Washington-based conservation group.
(The study identified 38 properties in Aransas Pass that together suffered 114 federal flood insurance losses and received more than $1 million in total payments.
(Aransas Pass was identified by the federation as among the 300 cities nationwide where properties sustained multiple flood loss payments, making it among the most suitable locales in the nation for voluntary property buyout consideration.
(The problem isn't as severe in Corpus Christi, though the city was listed among the Top 200 communities in the nation ranked by total flood loss payments. The study identified 89 properties in Corpus Christi that collectively suffered 205 flood losses with total payments exceeding $2.9 million.
(The report showed two homes in Corpus Christi, together valued at $48,000, that received a total of seven flood loss payments for $59,879, said Ben McNitt, a co-author of the study.
(Overall, Texas ranks first in the nation with 1,305 single-family homes that have received flood insurance payments greater than the value of the homes, McNitt said.)
Of the top 200 homes nationwide where flood-insurance payments exceeded property values, more than half are in Harris County, Houston and Friendswood.
``These numbers defy common sense,'' said David Conrad, a water resources specialist for the federation.
Federation officials urged communities to consider buying flood-prone properties before yet another disaster strikes, saying buyout programs would aid flood victims, save taxpayers money and help conserve natural habitats along floodplains.
``Voluntary buyouts, where they are applicable, get people in distress out of harm's way,'' Conrad said. ``The community, environment and wildlife all benefit.''
The federation, which said privacy regulations prevented it from identifying specific properties, reviewed repetitive flood loss data from the federally financed National Flood Insurance Program to identify communities best suited to buyout programs.
The study, which reviewed insurance data from 1978 to 1995, found Texas - with 33 communities - topped the nation in the number of places where properties have sustained multiple flood losses.
In those Texas communities, 6,242 properties had received at least $1,000 worth of flood damage twice in 10 years. In all, $356 million in insurance payments were doled out to those properties in the 18-year period.
Texas also led the nation in the amount of insurance payments to properties that had been damaged previously in floods. In all, 866 Texas properties received $45 million in insurance payments after they had been damaged in the past.
Emergency management officials noted Texas - particularly the Houston area - has a high number of properties that lie in the floodplain, many of which were built before floodplain maps were accurately drawn.
Weather is also a factor, said Michael Armstrong, associate director for mitigation at the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
``The Gulf Coast is repeatedly getting hit by hurricanes and the floods that follow hurricanes,'' Armstrong said.
Historically, communities have preferred structural remedies to the flood control problem, including building dams and levees and channelizing rivers.
But as insurance payments continue to skyrocket in the wake of such disasters as the 1993 Midwest floods, alternatives like buyout programs have become more popular.
Under buyout plans, property owners agree to relocate and sell their properties for fair market value. The federal government pays 75 percent of the buyout cost, with local governments pitching in 25 percent. The acquired property is used for recreational purposes or reverts to its natural wetlands.
According to FEMA, 17,000 properties nationwide have been bought out in the last five years, including 486 in Texas. Local officials vowed to do more to promote the idea.
``The buyout program is a dedication of ours,'' said E.C. Kobs of the Harris County Flood Control District. ``We are convinced that there are people so deep in the floodplain that there's nothing we can do to help them structurally.''
Staff writer Jeffrey Tomich contributed to this report. He can be reached at 886-4316 or by e-mail at tomichj@scripps.comPost your comments about local news eventsFront Page || Main Index || News || Business || Texas || South Texas Outdoors || Birdwatching || Sports || Entertainment || Selena || Education || South Texas Attractions || World Wide Web