County recommends flood insurance

Flathead County residents who have concerns about the possibility of flooding on their property may check out flood-plain maps at the county planning and zoning office.

The flood-plain maps identify areas considered at risk of flooding. The areas are classified as 100-year or 500-year flood-plain zones.

In Flathead County, all rivers, lakes and creeks have some flood plains around them, according to Bailey Minnich, a planner in the Flathead County Planning and Zoning Office.

County officials recommend that people who own property in a flood plain purchase flood insurance, Minnich said. Because it can take up to a month for some new flood insurance policies to take effect, county officials recommend that people start thinking about their insurance needs now, before spring snowmelt and runoff begins.

Flooding can occur at any time and at any location in the county, she said.

“It comes down to that perfect combination of snow, rain and temperatures,” Minnich said. This year, flood potential is high because of snowpack in the mountains.

According to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Flathead River Basin snowpack was 125 percent of average on Monday.

People may contact their insurance agents for additional information about flood plains and flood insurance, Minnich said, or contact the National Flood Insurance Program, a division of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, at 888-379-9531 or at www.floodsmart.gov.

People who want specific flood-plain area information can call the Planning and Zoning Office at 751-8200 or go to the office on the second floor of the Earl Bennett Building in Kalispell.