luuknam Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 Here you just enter the address (or city, if you don't want to be that specific) that you're interested in: https://msc.fema.gov/portal Then, on the locator map, you take note of the (pretty long) number (with probably a letter at the end) that's in your area of interest (you might have to zoom in a bit first to see the number for your area). Then, click on "show all products for this area", "effective products", "firm panels", and then find the one labeled with your number, and download it (viewing it online didn't work so well for me). Not all areas seem to have a map though. Also, some maps are much more recent than others... for one area the most recent map seemed to be from 1981, in the other from 2008. Other option: https://fema.maps.arcgis.com/home/webmap/viewer.html?webmap=cbe088e7c8704464aa0fc34eb99e7f30 BUT, you'd need to have it zoomed in the right amount to see the flood hazards - if you're zoomed out too much, they don't show. Also, all the LOMAs are kind of distracting (they tell you where people have filed for amendments to the map, usually because they're naturally higher than the flood plain that the map thinks they're in (these maps are used for flood insurance purposes, iiuc), so they do tend to indicate where flood plains are, but still... too many trees to see the forest in some spots, imo). It's got the same "area not included" for certain areas. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rachel Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 Thanks! I was actually wondering how likely my house is to end up flooded someday. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 Some food for thought about these maps: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/how-federal-flood-maps-ignore-the-risks-of-climate-change/ 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luuknam Posted August 29, 2017 Author Share Posted August 29, 2017 (edited) Some food for thought about these maps: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/how-federal-flood-maps-ignore-the-risks-of-climate-change/ Right... these maps are based on the past, not the future. But, if you're currently in a flood plain, you're more likely to get flooded than if you're currently not in a flood plain, I'd imagine. If it hadn't been 3am when I posted it, I might've bothered to find elevation maps too (actually, probably not, because it was a pain figuring out how to find the right maps and how to get them to work - it's probably going to be a little while until I'm feeling inspired enough to find elevation maps - let's maybe leave finding those as an exercise to the reader (and no, it's not as simple as current flood maps + elevation maps, but surely they have some relevance, and I don't think most people (incl. me) would really be able to understand what e.g. hydrology maps say about flood risk for a particular area - but, we can definitely leave finding those maps as another exercise for the reader, as well as maybe writing an essay on how to interpret them)). We recently saw a documentary in which they showed how Tokyo has huge underground reservoirs to cope with excess water (I think that was in Generation Earth, episode 1, which may or may not leave Netflix Sept. 1st). They mentioned how all the concrete and asphalt and all that mean that the ground can't absorb as much water as it would otherwise be able to, which is why they spent that much money to build those huge reservoirs. Edited August 29, 2017 by luuknam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PineFarmMom Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 I also found a website where you can enter your address and it will tell you your elevation. We are in an affected area near Houston. Our house is high on a hill and I know we are high enough to not flood out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luuknam Posted August 29, 2017 Author Share Posted August 29, 2017 I also found a website where you can enter your address and it will tell you your elevation. We are in an affected area near Houston. Our house is high on a hill and I know we are high enough to not flood out. But your elevation doesn't matter as much as your elevation compared to surrounding areas. You could be a mile above sea level, but if everything around you is 2 miles above sea level, the water will be in your house. Hence the need for a map. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PineFarmMom Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 But your elevation doesn't matter as much as your elevation compared to surrounding areas. You could be a mile above sea level, but if everything around you is 2 miles above sea level, the water will be in your house. Hence the need for a map. Wasn't really arguing that. I just thought it was a cool website... lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luuknam Posted August 29, 2017 Author Share Posted August 29, 2017 Wasn't really arguing that. I just thought it was a cool website... lol Ok. You didn't link to the website, btw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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