CHICAGO – Representatives from FEMA will host a Flood Map Information Open House for communities in Madison, Monroe and St. Clair counties, Illinois, beginning next week. Details for the meetings are as follows:
Monroe County—Flood Map Information Open House
WHEN: January 17, 2023, 5:30–7:30 p.m. CT
WHERE: The View at 11 South
1000 Eleven South, Suite 5A,
Columbia, IL, 62236
Madison County—Flood Map Information Open Houses
WHEN: January 18, 2023, 5:30-7:30 p.m. CT
WHERE: Granite City Township Hall
2060 Delmar Ave.
Granite City, IL 62040
WHEN: January 19, 2023, 5:30–7:30 p.m. CT
WHERE: Wood River Public Library
326 E. Ferguson Avenue
Wood River, IL, 62095
St. Clair County—Flood Map Information Open Houses
WHEN: January 24, 2023, 5:30–7:30 p.m. CT
WHERE: Clyde C. Jordan Senior Citizen Center
6755 State Street
East St Louis, IL, 62203
WHEN: January 25, 2023, 5:30–7:30 p.m. CDT
WHERE: Caseyville Community Center
909 South Main Street
Caseyville, IL, 62232
The open houses will give residents a chance to review preliminary versions of the recently completed Flood Insurance Study (FIS) reports and their accompanying preliminary Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs). The FIS and the FIRMs provide base flood (also known as the 1% -annual-chance event) information, designate areas that are subject to significant flood hazards within the county and offer information that public officials use to guide development in the floodplain.
Experts at the open houses will help residents understand flood risk and flood insurance, floodplain development regulations and the mapping process in these counties. The newly prepared preliminary floodplain maps can also be reviewed at the meeting.
Once the maps become effective, they will be used as the basis for flood insurance ratings as well as local flood protection regulations adopted under the National Flood Insurance Program. FEMA encourages public officials to use the maps to assist planning processes and prepare communities to quickly respond to and recover from future flood events.
Property owners, realtors, lenders, and insurance agents are urged to take advantage of this opportunity to learn more about flood risk and hazard mitigation within their community. Digital files of the Preliminary FIRM and FIS report can be downloaded from www.fema.gov/preliminaryfloodhazarddata.
If you need a reasonable accommodation (sign language interpreters, Braille, CART, etc.), please send an email to FEMA-Region5-FloodInsuranceOutreach@fema.dhs.gov at least 48 hours before the event. Last minute requests will be accepted but may not be possible to fulfill.
For more information, contact the FEMA News Desk at FEMA-R5-News-Desk@fema.dhs.gov.
FEMA's mission is helping people before, during, and after disasters