Latest Flood Headlines

All the headlines from our Flood Topic Page, ordered by recency.

FEMA Extends Flood Insurance Deadline for Wash., Ore.

Feb 14 2008 // The Federal Emergency Management Agency has extended a claims deadline for people in Washington and Oregon who had flood insurance for December damage. The deadline for returning a detailed proof of loss statement has been...

Ill. Officials Accuse FEMA of Miscounting Flooded Homes

Feb 13 2008 // Federal officials were mired in political favoritism and miscounted the number of damaged homes in rejecting two Illinois counties’ applications for disaster relief, local Illinios officials said this week. Leaders...

Government Report Urges Changes in Wind, Flood Damage Determinations

Feb 10 2008 // GAO finds fault with coverage exclusions in policies and lack of data available to assist with FEMA assessments Government adjusters trying to assess the accuracy of flood claims payments from the 2005 hurricane season...

Flood-damaged Southeastern Minn. Receives $77 Million in State Funding

Feb 8 2008 // State officials say southeastern Minnesota has received more than $77 million in state aid to help the area recover from last August’s devastating flooding. The money received so far is part of a $157 million...

Lawmakers Look to Help December Flood Victims

Feb 4 2008 // There’s silence in John Brunoff’s Washington dairy farm, except for the sound of a lone worker hosing an empty 5,000-gallon milk tank. Just nine weeks ago, more than 270 cows filled this organic dairy farm with...

GAO Urges Changes in Wind, Flood Damage Determinations

Feb 1 2008 // Government adjusters trying to assess the accuracy of flood claims payments from the 2005 hurricane season were hampered by a lack of access to data on wind damage from the National Flood Insurance Program and private...

Rebuking Agency, Judge Dismisses Katrina Lawsuit Against Corps

Feb 1 2008 // Saying his hands were tied by law, a federal judge in New Orleans dismissed a class-action lawsuit against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers over levee breaches after Hurricane Katrina, but rebuked the agency for failing to...

Insurers Say Property, Flood Insurance, Regulation Top Concerns in ’08

Feb 1 2008 // A group of insurers says it hopes U.S. lawmakers will continue to focus on the need for affordable property insurance, an optional federal charter for the insurance regulatory system in America, and comprehensive flood...

La.’s Valued Policy Law: New Teeth for Hurricane Claims?

Jan 27 2008 // Property damage from hurricanes primarily comes from two sources: wind and water. Insurance coverage for property damaged by wind, and by rain water which enters the property as a result of wind damage, is generally...

Engineers Warn Flooding is ‘Next Big Disaster’ for California

Jan 27 2008 // While flooding in California’s Central Valley is “the next big disaster waiting to happen,” water-related infrastructure issues confront almost every community across the country, according to engineers...

Regulators Address the Politics of Underwriting

Jan 27 2008 // There is an X-factor in setting insurance rates that even actuaries would have a hard time calculating: Politics. For those who serve as their state’s ultimate authority on what factors insurers can use to raise or...

The Pressure’s On

Jan 27 2008 // Washington State’s Kreidler believes now’s the time for the industry to face climate change Washington State Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler has proven adept at balancing the many demands placed upon state...

D.C. to Appeal Revised Flood maps

Jan 25 2008 // The District of Columbia is planning to challenge new maps from the Federal Emergency Management Agency that would designate a broad section of the city’s center a flood zone. The proposed new flood zone is several...

Ind. Governor Seeks Federal Disaster Aid for Flooded Counties

Jan 25 2008 // Governor Mitch Daniels is requesting federal assistance for people affected by flooding earlier this month in northern Indiana. Daniels declared a disaster emergency in the area on Wednesday and sent a letter to President...

House Passes Flood Insurance Reform Legislation

Jan 24 2008 // The House of Representatives passed H.R. 3959, sponsored by Financial Services Committee Chairman, Barney Frank (D-Mass.), and Rep. Scott Garrett (R-N.J.), legislation that would gradually phase-out some of the subsidies...

Hundreds Evacuated in Northern England Towns Hit by Flooding

Jan 23 2008 // Firefighters said they evacuated hundreds of people Monday from homes and businesses in flood-hit areas in northern England. About 60 homes were flooded near Huddersfield, 190 miles (305 kilometers) northwest of London,...

Red Cross: 900 Homes in Indiana Damaged by January Flooding

Jan 22 2008 // Flooding in Indiana earlier this month destroyed at least 184 homes and damaged as many as 700 others, the American Red Cross said Friday. The relief agency said more than 100 other homes were still inaccessible because of...

Flooding is ‘Next Big Disaster’ in Store for Calif., Say Engineers

Jan 18 2008 // While flooding in California’s Central Valley is “the next big disaster waiting to happen,” water-related infrastructure issues confront almost every community across the country, according to engineers...

La. Supreme Court to Hear Katrina Flood Claim Case

Jan 17 2008 // The Louisiana Supreme Court will hear arguments Feb. 26 to decide whether homeowner insurance policies cover water damage done to thousands of south Louisiana properties when the levees broke after Hurricane...

Another Class-Action Lawsuit Filed over Fernley Flood

Jan 14 2008 // Three law firms have filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of victims of the Fernley flood — the second such complaint in two days. In their suit filed in Lyon County District Court in Yerington, Nev. the Reno firms...