Roswell, feds wrangling over flood zone

ROSWELL, N.M. (KRQE-KBIM) - Officials in southeastern New Mexico are continuing a fight with the federal government over where flooding is or is not likely to occur.

They have a problem with a 7-year-old study conducted by FEMA that they say has exaggerated the flood plain in Roswell, which costs a lot of people money.

For years Roswell city engineers have been trying to get FEMA to look at what they say is the right data for the flood plain in Roswell.

Before a FEMA study that concluded in 2002, the last time a flood study was done around Chaves County was in the 1980's.

Roswell has two rivers running through the middle of town, the Rio Hondo which was dry Monday, and the Spring River.

Thousands of people who live in between the two rivers are paying for flood insurance.

One homeowner said he believes it's costing him more than $1,000 a year.

The flood plain also encompasses a majority of businesses in the area.

The city says, in reality, thousands of homes and dozens of businesses aren't anywhere near potential flood zones.

The FEMA flood maps from September of 2009 essentially doubled the potential flood zone in between the Hondo and Spring rivers from the original maps made in the 1980s.

City officials say they have already spent the better part of seven years trying to show FEMA better data that would shrink the flood zones.

"But we haven't given up,” said David Storey, an engineer with the city of Roswell. "We could have folded and said we can't fight FEMA.

"We haven't done that, and that's because of all the people who are affected."

The city and Chaves County approved the current FEMA flood maps at the end of September.
They did that, they said, because they had no choice.

If they hadn't, they could have lost federal money and grants and been dropped from FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program.

The city of Roswell said it's spent about $90,000 trying to get the correct information and data to FEMA over the past seven years.

Much of that money has been spent on an independent firm that has compiled data and studies for the city.

That firm is now in the process of appealing to FEMA for more accurate maps.