FREDERICK, MD - You may remember these scenes from Frederick during the hurricane, rivers overflowing and parks underwater; but Mayor Randy McClement says this is exactly what the city is supposed to do.
"They'd say, 'oh my gosh, the park is flooded!' and we go, 'that's good, it's doing exactly what it's supposed to be.' The park is part of the flood control plain: It is supposed to retain water, allowing it to get down through the channels at a reasonable rate, instead of just rushing through downtown and flooding everything," says Frederick Mayor, Randy McClement.
And it's not just Mayor McClement who believes the city's flood plan worked swimmingly. FEMA just recognized Frederick as a top city for managing floods in their national Community Rating System program.
"The city has gone above and beyond the minimum requirements of the national flood insurance program, because they recognized that there are other things they can do to make their citizens much safer, and save them money on their insurance policies as well," says Kathryn Lipiecki, a Mitigation Planning Specialist with FEMA.
Now city residents will save about $73 annually in their flood insurance because of this FEMA rating, if they have the national flood insurance plan.
"It shows that one, that we do have a concern for our community to make sure that we protect our residents from all parts of disasters and floods. We know that our city has flooded in the past, back in the '70's we had a bad flood, and the Carroll Creek Project was meant to take care of that," says Mayor McClement.
City officials say the huge tunnels that run underground throughout Frederick are key to controlling floods.
"They've instituted a lot of different programs," says Lipiecki. "For instance, some structural projects they've done, they've incorporated higher standards, higher building standards into their flood plain management ordinance that are really just making the community safer."
Frederick is just one of 11 communities across Maryland that FEMA awarded a top ranking and discount to residents with their national flood hazard insurance. To research this insurance see their website.
"They'd say, 'oh my gosh, the park is flooded!' and we go, 'that's good, it's doing exactly what it's supposed to be.' The park is part of the flood control plain: It is supposed to retain water, allowing it to get down through the channels at a reasonable rate, instead of just rushing through downtown and flooding everything," says Frederick Mayor, Randy McClement.
And it's not just Mayor McClement who believes the city's flood plan worked swimmingly. FEMA just recognized Frederick as a top city for managing floods in their national Community Rating System program.
"The city has gone above and beyond the minimum requirements of the national flood insurance program, because they recognized that there are other things they can do to make their citizens much safer, and save them money on their insurance policies as well," says Kathryn Lipiecki, a Mitigation Planning Specialist with FEMA.
Now city residents will save about $73 annually in their flood insurance because of this FEMA rating, if they have the national flood insurance plan.
"It shows that one, that we do have a concern for our community to make sure that we protect our residents from all parts of disasters and floods. We know that our city has flooded in the past, back in the '70's we had a bad flood, and the Carroll Creek Project was meant to take care of that," says Mayor McClement.
City officials say the huge tunnels that run underground throughout Frederick are key to controlling floods.
"They've instituted a lot of different programs," says Lipiecki. "For instance, some structural projects they've done, they've incorporated higher standards, higher building standards into their flood plain management ordinance that are really just making the community safer."
Frederick is just one of 11 communities across Maryland that FEMA awarded a top ranking and discount to residents with their national flood hazard insurance. To research this insurance see their website.
