CHARLESTON -- National Flood Insurance Program regulations are now not only creating a hardship for those with homes in the Birds Point-New Madrid Floodway but for county officials as well.
Mississippi County commissioners reviewed during their regular meeting Thursday a letter dated June 10 from Stevens R. Scrivner, chief of the State Emergency Management Agency's logistics, resources, mitigation and floodplain management branch, regarding structures located within a floodplain that are substantially damaged.
Scrivner explained that repairs to substantially damaged structures and new construction must be built at or elevated to the proper height in regards to base flood elevation and that county officials must conduct a damage assessment of all disaster-damaged properties to ensure compliance with the NFIP.
He closed the letter by requesting a summary of findings be mailed by June 30 to "help ensure that your community remains in good standing in the program."
Commissioners expressed doubts regarding their ability to meet that deadline.
Richard Marvin said based on an appraisal last year, he thinks he can complete repairs at his home located on Highway 77 at Dorena in the spillway for less than 50 percent of that appraised value.
"I'm within that boundary," Marvin said. "I'm doing the work myself."
County Clerk Junior DeLay advised, however, that even though Marvin would be able to restore the home by spending less than 50 percent of the appraised value, the NFIP paid a claim on the home as fully destroyed so Marvin can only rebuild at base flood elevation.
Marvin said he hopes to find some solution soon as "being in limbo is kind of stressful."
In other business Thursday, commissioners determined they need to break out debris removal costs and safety measure costs from other FEMA disaster recovery claims as partial reimbursements under these categories are disbursed sooner and discussed additional labor available to help the county "get caught up" on road restoration.
For the complete article and more local news stories, see the June 17 edition of the Standard Democrat or click here to log on to the electronic edition.