AUSTIN (KXAN) – Almost two months after torrential rain and flooding in Central Texas left hundreds of homes damaged and multiple people dead, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has started paying damage claims, according to a press release from the Insurance Council of Texas (ICT).
On Oct. 16, heavy rains lead to rising waters in the Llano and Colorado Rivers and flash flooding in surrounding areas. FEMA reports that over 800 damage claims were filed since then for insured losses and payments have exceeded $22 million. The agency projects payments will be well over $30 million by the time all the claims are paid off.
PAST COVERAGE: Colorado, Llano River flooding updates
Uninsured homeowners dealing with flood damage will not receive help from FEMA. “Unfortunately, more than half of the homeowners who suffered flood damage had no flood insurance,” ICT spokesman Mark Hanna said in the news release. The Llano County Emergency Management Office reported that the number of uninsured homeowners may have been two or three times more than those with insurance.
A number of cars were also flooded and officials estimate that about 75 percent of Texas drivers have comprehensive insurance coverage that covers flood damage.
