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Such high-risk zones are based on maps prepared by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Yet many of those maps are widely viewed as misleading and outdated, failing to represent recent flood events, rising sea levels and other potential impacts of climate change.
During Hurricane Harvey, roughly 80 percent of the storm’s flood victims had not been required to carry flood insurance, even though some lived in areas that had previously flooded.
Federal flood insurance isn’t a cure-all for homeowners hit by flooding. The policies cover up to $250,000 in rebuilding costs and $100,000 to replace personal belongings. But for some families, such coverage can mean the difference between recovery and destitution. While FEMA offers grants for victims of natural disasters, those grants are capped at $33,000, and generally the payout is less.
Lehmann estimates there are 400,000 homeowners holding federal flood insurance policies in the Carolinas, Virginia and Georgia, totalling $106 billion in coverage. If 10 percent of those sustain flood damage, the insurance program could be on the hook for at least $10 billion in payments, more than what was paid out after Hurricane Harvey or Superstorm Sandy in 2012.
That’s a problem, he said, because another costly hurricane could exhaust the insurance program’s resources, forcing FEMA to once again borrow from the U.S. Treasury.
In recent years, the R Street Institute, insurance companies, environmentalists and other taxpayer advocates have founded a group called the SmarterSafer Coalition to reform the National Flood Insurance Program. The coalition has pressed Congress to invest more in floodplain mapping, facilitate more private insurance and force certain high-risk homeowners to pay more for insurance.
That latter provision has come under fire from property owners, the real estate industry and coastal lawmakers, one reason Congress has balked at making major changes to the program.
In Columbia, DuBois moved away from his flooded neighborhood following the 2015 disaster, but says he learned a lesson. If he ever buys a house near a creek or river, he said, he would buy flood insurance, whether it was required or not.
The State’s Jeff Wilkinson contributed to this report.
The Cajun Navy's 1,200-plus volunteers rescued more than 10,000 from the devastating flooding in Houston following Hurricane Harvey.
Ukrainian prima ballerina Tatiana Goliakova will perform at the Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater, AZERTAC reports.
Peoples’ Artist of Ukraine Tatiana Goliakova will perform in "Giselle" ballet by Adolphe Adam.
Laureate of international competitions, Ukrainian ballet master Stanislav Olshanski will perform the role of Graf Albert.
Beer must be sold at all venues hosting matches in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, football's world governing body, Fifa, has insisted. Fifa General Secretary, Jerome Valcke, said the right to sell beer must be enshrined in a World Cup law the Brazilian Congress is considering.
Alcoholic drinks are currently banned at Brazilian stadiums and the country's health minister has urged Congress to maintain the ban in the new law.
Brewer Budweiser is a big Fifa sponsor.
Mr Valcke is visiting Brazil to press for progress on the much-delayed World Cup law.
Fifa has become frustrated, because voting on the legislation has been held up in Congress by the dispute over alcohol sales.
The Brazilian government has also failed to resolve differences with Fifa over cut-price tickets for students and senior citizens, and demands for sponsors of the World Cup to have their trademarks protected.
In remarks to journalists in Rio de Janeiro, Mr Valcke sounded frustrated with Brazilian officials: Alcoholic drinks are part of the Fifa World Cup, so we're going to have them. Excuse me if I sound a bit arrogant but that's something we won't negotiate, he said.
Alcohol was banned at Brazilian football matches in 2003 in an attempt to tackle violence between rival football fans.
Health Minister Alexandre Padilha and other MPs have called for the ban to be maintained.
Mr Valcke said negotiations with Brazil over details of the World Cup had been slow.
We lost a lot of time and we were not able to discuss with people in charge that are willing to make a decision, he said, adding that it was the first time a country was still in talks five years after winning the right to host the tournament.
During his visit to Brazil Mr Valcke has been touring the stadiums in 12 cities where the 2014 World Cup will be played.
He criticised the pace of construction and said Brazil had not yet improved its infrastructure to the level needed to welcome visit.
Tags: 2014 FIFA World Cup, beer, Brazil, FIFA, Jerome Valcke.
There’s already been two in and one out at Portman Road this summer under new boss Paul Hurst. Stuart Watson looks at how Town’s squad is shaping up.
The big question is whether Bartosz Bialkowski signs a new contract upon his return from the World Cup with Poland. If he doesn’t, then Town will have to start thinking about cashing in given he is now heading into the last year of his deal.
Experienced back-up man Dean Gerken has proven he is more than a capable Championship player, but he is still rehabbing from the hip surgery he underwent in February.
Last season’s third choice custodian, Michael Crowe, has been allowed to join Championship rivals Preston on a free. Harry Wright, the 19-year-old son of former Blues favourite Richard, could fill that void though.
It may be prudent to plan for life after Bart. It’s worth noting that Manchester United’s Dean Henderson, who excelled for Paul Hurst on loan at Shrewsbury last season, has already joined Sheffield United.
STU SAYS: Plan A: Try and convince Bart to sign. Plan B: Promote Gerken (if he proves fitness), sign a new back-up who can provide healthy competition and use funds on other areas of team.
Myles Kenlock can provide strong competition for Jonas Knudsen at left-back and has a head-start to impress Hurst given the Knudsen is currently away at the World Cup with Denmark.
Josh Emmanuel returns from a season on loan in League One at Rotherham, where he was named the Millers’ Young Player of the Year after playing a key role in their promotion via the play-offs. He can fill the Dominic Iorfa void.
Young Irishman Barry Cotter produced a fine debut towards the back end of last season, so there is healthy competition for the club’s most senior right-back, Jordan Spence.
STU SAYS: Not Town’s strongest area in the squad, but well stocked and there are bigger priorities.
Christophe Berra went last summer, Tommy Smith departed in January, Cameron Carter-Vickers’ loan has expired and now Adam Webster has been sold to Bristol City for £3.5m.
That leaves Town with the sum total of one senior centre-back in the form of captain Luke Chambers.
Highly-rated England Under-19 international Trevoh Chalobah has arrived on a season-long from Chelsea of course, but you’d be surprised if he played anywhere near 46 games in his debut season of men’s football.
Academy graduates Luke Woolfenden and Chris Smith are on the fringes, but may benefit more from further loan spells away. I’d be amazed if Hurst doesn’t try and sign Toto Nsiala for a third time after bringing him to both Grimbsy and Shrewsbury.
Blackpool’s Curtis Tilt has been linked and certainly fits the bill. He excelled in his debut season at League One after stepping up from non-league.
STU SAYS: Town can’t risk going into a season short on centre-backs again. Spence and Knudsen can both play inside, but I still think the Blues need two more in this position.
If – and this is a big ‘if’ – everyone stays fit, then there are plenty of options.
Callum Connolly (loan expired), Luke Hyam (released), Kevin Bru (Apollon Limassol, free) and Stephen Gleeson (Aberdeen, free) have all moved on, but Emyr Huws, Tom Adeyemi, Andre Dozzell and Teddy Bishop could all be like new signing after long-term injuries.
Hurst admits he may have to wrap the aforementioned quartet in cotton wool though, with Huws and Bishop still not fit enough to take part in full training.
There’s hope that Dozzell’s fellow England U19 internationals Tristan Nydam and Flynn Downes can kick-on after breakthrough campaigns. Downes will have benefitted from his spell helping Luton Town achieve promotion in League Two.
New boy Chalobah is just as comfortable in midfield as he is at the back too.
The ever-reliable Cole Skuse may have to work that little bit harder to keep his place in the team week-in, week-out this season.
STU SAYS: A decent blend here in terms of style and age. Let’s hope the new focus on sports science can keep them all available.
One of the first things Hurst identified when looking at this squad was a shortage of wingers.
Grant Ward will be hoping to take his game to the next level this season under a manager who should loosen the shackles.
Danny Rowe returns from a loan spell at League Two side Lincoln City but remains sidelined following ankle surgery.
Jordan Roberts yesterday arrived on a Bosman free transfer from League Two side Crawley Town.
Bersant Celina (loan expired) has gone, while Hurst says he has no plans to bring the exciting but injury-prone Mustapha Carayol back to Portman Road and instead has his own targets in mind. Alex Rodman, one of Hurts’s key men at Shrewsbury last season, could be turned to after he rejected a new deal at the Shropshire club. The 31-year-old was let go by Aston Villa as a youth and subsequently climbed his way up the football ladder.
STU SAYS: Roberts is a punt that may or may not come off, while Rowe is not ready to hit the ground running. Town, for my money, still need two more wide men. Star quality in this department is likely to come from the Premier League loan market, as was the case with Ryan Fraser, Tom Lawrence and Celina.
Martyn Waghorn and Joe Garner will be challenged to build on impressive debut campaigns for the Blues, while Freddie Sears may just get a lease of new life under Hurst after spending so long toiling on the wing.
Young trio Ben Folami, Aaron Drinan and Ben Morris are all capable of breakthrough seasons, but you would think Hurst has made it clear he is looking for a bone fide David McGoldrick replacement after the latter walked away at the end of his contract.
STU SAYS: As good as McGoldrick was on his day, all those injuries meant his high wages couldn’t be justified. Get the feeling Hurst will be looking for a physical front man to complement what he’s got.
If you live in London, you may have heard of Laundrapp, one of a plethora of on-demand laundry startups targeting the UK capital city (and other cities in the country). After disclosing a £1.5 million funding round in January, the company has been spending heavily on marketing, not least television, radio and billboard advertising.
That’s something that is relatively uncommon, although not unheard of, for such an early-stage company, and is sometimes frowned upon by investors. Laundrapp was founded in 2014 but only saw its official launch at the start of this year.
Today the startup’s advertising coffers get anther boost. The company has raised a further £4 million to be used for “continued rapid expansion” across the UK, and — you’ve guessed it — a “substantial investment” in marketing. In other words, don’t expect those TV ads to disappear any time soon.
Currently available in London, Edinburgh, and Birmingham, Laundrapp competes with a number of Uber-styled on-demand laundry apps.
There’s also ihateironing.com, which partners with local dry cleaners who handle collection and delivery, but under the ihateironing brand, and LaundryRepublic, which operates a 24-hour “locker-based laundry and dry cleaning service”, negating the need for a customer to be home for pickup and delivery.
Actually we don’t believe the market is crowded at all, to the contrary this market is very much in it’s infancy and we see Laundrapp as being the service that will revolutionise the digital on-demand laundry industry. We see our competitor more as the washing machine, we’re trying to encourage an entirely new consumer habit with Laundrapp in the same way as Uber did with on-demand travel, we’re not competing with other laundry services, we’re actually creating an entirely new category, there’s a bigger mission.
Meanwhile, Laundrapp’s new funding comes from a group of investors including Michael Spencer, founder of interdealer broker ICAP plc, and Jeff Blue, the former strategic development director at Sports Direct International.
Note: This performance review was created when the 2016 Lincoln MKC was new.
When it comes to the performance of the 2016 Lincoln MKC, reviewer opinion is mixed. Some test drivers say it delivers smooth acceleration and adequate engine power along with a soft ride, even over rough roads. Others report that it feels imprecise and that the transmission sometimes hesitates to downshift when acceleration is needed. Many test drivers enjoy the added versatility the MKC’s adaptive suspension affords with its Comfort, Normal and Sport modes, but others feel that there is too little difference between the three settings.
The 2016 MKC comes standard with a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder EcoBoost engine that puts out 240 horsepower. A 285-horsepower turbocharged 2.3-liter four-cylinder EcoBoost engine is available on the Select and Reserve trims. A six-speed automatic transmission is standard. The MKC gets an EPA-estimated 20/29 mpg city/highway, which is about average for the class.
Test drivers say that both engines offered in the MKC are responsive and offer adequate power for daily driving. While some reviewers report that the MKC feels quick when accelerating or passing, others say that its power and acceleration are disappointing. Some critics prefer models with the more powerful 2.3-liter engine, which also feature all-wheel drive. They note that the transmission occasionally hesitates to downshift when maximum acceleration is required.
Front-wheel drive is standard in the 2016 MKC. All-wheel drive is available, as is an adaptive suspension with Comfort, Normal and Sport modes. Test drivers report that the MKC delivers a smooth ride, even over tough roads. Some reviewers say that the MKC provides plenty of road grip and is surprisingly agile, but others think that there is too much body roll and that the steering can feel imprecise. Most critics agree that the MKC is somewhat engaging to drive, though some point out that there is little difference between the three suspension modes.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Montpelier’s City Manager and the Exec. Dir. of the Biomass Energy Resource Center about heating and generating downtown buildings with wood chips.
The city of Montpelier hopes to heat and help power downtown buildings with wood chips. Could it work for other cities? Also, a talk with the Danish Ambassador and we visit a Vermont flutemaker.
I'm not a korean woman, though I look like one. I'm a second-generation Korean-American. For most of my life, I have felt like the proverbial all-American girl, a product of my location and language. I was raised in the Midwest, where the sight of another Asian person outside my family would startle me. And I never learned Korean. My parents spoke to us children only in English, reserving Korean for their private use, especially whenever any really interesting topic came up.
Now I'm married with kids of my own. This year, my husband took a new job, and we moved from the Midwest to a small town in Los Angeles County. Imagine my surprise, on strolling out onto our quiet residential street near the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, meeting a halmoni (Korean grandma) taking her evening walk. She was so friendly, and looked amazingly like my father.
Koreans, I soon found out, are replete in our new community. While attending a PTA meeting at my older daughter's school, I was accosted by a group of Korean ladies.
"Hi, I don't speak Korean," I replied, smiling broadly.
This lady turned out to be the president of the Korean Mothers' Support Group at our school. She invited me to one of their meetings, where I sat smiling broadly again, only understanding words like "all right" or "hurry up."
While some might think that a support group based on ethnicity is separatist, I think this kind of organization provides a valuable service. Consider the matter of good food, for instance. The Korean mothers at our school host an annual luncheon for all the teachers and staff. Suspecting they were good cooks, I readily offered to participate.
In the Korean tradition, respect for teachers is second only to love of family. In preparation for the big day, these ladies spared no effort. One made a trip to the Los Angeles flower market and transformed the teachers' lounge with her stunning arrangements of vibrant oranges, purples, warm browns and reds, placed with ivory candles on tablecloths of intense deep blue.
Baskets of fruit adorned the tables, which were laden with delicious food - the glass noodles and delicate vegetables of chap-chae, colorful kim-bup, lightly browned mandu dumplings, and Korean honey cakes. In the corner, simmering in two large electric skillets, was the Korean beef barbecue dish: pulgoki.
WHAT did I bring? Like any good Midwesterner, I brought dessert: tiny lemon cheesecake squares with a nut-and-cocoa crust and topping. Though not remotely Korean, they were accepted by Korean speakers, English speakers, and polylglots alike.
Our guests were delighted at being treated like royalty for the lunch hour. They laughed and chatted while they ate, appreciative of all the attention. Once they went back to work, we ladies sat down to eat. Our president made a small speech in Korean, and everyone except uncomprehending me applauded.
"Let me translate for you, Debbie," the president told me later. "I said, 'It was fun, wasn't it?' "
For me, it was a wonderful time. I've decided these Korean ladies are a great group, and I'm glad they included their rather mute sister. I have to learn a little Korean now, even if just to get the recipes. I expect it will be fun.
A man in his 30s who was injured during an attack in Killorglin, Co Kerry early yesterday has died in hospital.
The man, who was named locally as Stephen O'Connor, from Glencar, was critically injured during an incident outside a fast-food outlet at around 2.20am.
Mr O'Connor had been on a life-support machine at Cork University Hospital since yesterday.
The results of a post-mortem examination will direct the course of the garda investigation.
An incident room has been set up at Killorglin Garda Station, and an appeal for witnesses has been renewed.
Gardaí believe that there were a large number of people in the area when the assault occurred.
They have appealed to any witnesses, including taxi drivers and other motorists with dashcam footage, to contact them.
The parliamentary watchdog has officially rejected claims the Scottish Government broke purdah rules with funding announcements.
North-east MSP Ross Thomson had complained about three funding announcements for millions of pounds of funding in the run-up to the council election.
This included £1million for fisheries, £1m for crofting and more than £8m for a Glasgow regeneration scheme.
But Scottish Government Permanent Secretary Leslie Evans has investigated and concluded there was no wrong-doing.
She said: “As you know, the guidance requires us not to undertake any activity which would call into question our political impartiality or use public resources for party political purposes.
“Having looked into the circumstances of this case, there is no evidence whatsoever the civil service allowed party political considerations to influence the timing of this announcement.
“This was one of a number of announcements relating to the grant decisions being made under the authority of a panel that operates independently of Ministers.
Ms Evans added she was satisfied there had been no ministerial influence on the timing of the decisions.

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