Politics & Government

Are You in A Floodplain? Find Out Here

The Rhode Island Emergency Management Agency offers a floodplain mapping tool to zero in on your neighborhood.

Is your home at risk of flooding? Should you have flood insurance to protect against water damage even if you don't live right near water?

The answer may be more difficult than you thought as the state is going through a remapping to change expected flood zones inland and along the coast. As waters continue to rise — a problem that is especially affecting Rhode Island — it's even more critical to protect your property against flood damage, which is not usually covered by typical homeowners insurance. 

The Rhode Island Emergency Management Agency has released the Rhode Island Floodplain Mapping Tool to educate the public about flood risks for specific areas or properties. The tool allows residents to search for their address and zoom an interactive map right onto their neighborhoods to learn whether or not they are living in a newly designated floodplain. 

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“This tool will be extremely useful for Rhode Islanders to assess the proximity of flood zones to their property, business or structure and help with future planning decisions,” said RIEMA Executive Director Jamia R. McDonald aid in a release. 

While the state points out the Mapping Tool is not intended for legal, engineering or surveying purposes, it does provide users with an approximate flood zone determination relative to the flood hazard areas delineated on FEMA’s Flood Insurance Rate Maps. Multiple links are embedded in the program to guide users towards relevant information pertaining to the National Flood Insurance Program. 

Find out what's happening in Woonsocketwith free, real-time updates from Patch.


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