Flooding is one of the most common natural disasters, and one of the most expensive. Floods often follow hours or days of steady rain that leaves the ground too soaked to absorb more water. Flash floods strike with little warning when water rises quickly in a creek, a channel or another low spot.
Fredville is divided into 10 major watersheds. Each one includes places that can flood, either from creeks overflowing their banks or from water collecting in streets and yards.
Places that have flooded in the past include sections of East Calloway Street (such as the Foxtail Bend Mobile Home Park and the Twilight Soccer Complex), Wrenfield Parkway near Dunmore Park, Heron Creek where it meets the interstate, and the corridor along the Sorrel River.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has mapped most of the areas where creeks flood. Still, some flood-prone land, poorly drained areas and spots where streets flood have never been mapped. Even if your property has never flooded, or FEMA's maps place it outside the flood limits, it could still be at risk.
Much of the city has never experienced a full “100-year” flood, which has a 1% chance of happening in any year. That does not mean your property is safe. Over the life of a typical 30-year mortgage, a home in the 1% annual chance floodplain has about a 30% chance of being hit by that size of flood.
Living outside the 1% annual chance floodplain, which the city's flood maps label a Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA), does not rule out flooding. Roughly 30% of flood insurance claims come from properties outside the SFHA, in areas rated as low to moderate risk. That is a strong reason for every household to carry flood insurance, since standard homeowners policies do not cover flood damage. Learn more about flood insurance.
Maps of flood-prone areas and records of past flooding can be reviewed with the city's stormwater staff. See drainage and stormwater management for contact information.
Real-Time River and Stream Data
- USGS peak streamflow and gauge data
- Reservoir reports from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
- City of Fredville real-time gauge data
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