On March 29, 2011, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) issued a Letter of Final Determination (LFD) that established final flood elevations and floodplain boundaries. Final Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) and Flood Insurance Study (FIS) report were issued at that time and can be accessed below. In addition, FEMA issued digital flood data set that can be accessed through the interactive Flood Map Viewer below.
The new FIRMs will go into effect on September 29, 2011. These new flood maps represent the best available data for flooding conditions throughout Shawnee County and may be used by respective Shawnee County communities for floodplain management purposes prior to their effective date.
There are two options to view the final flood data. The first is to use the interactive Flood Map Viewer or use FEMA’s online Map Service Center to produce a FIRMette. The Flood Map Viewer gives you a greater range of options by which to produce a map specific to your needs. To illustrate the difference between these two options, let’s say we are interested in knowing how the new flood maps affect property located at 3200 SW 33rd Ct. in the City Topeka. The following illustrates the different types of maps that can be produced using either the interactive Flood Map Viewer or FEMA’s Map Service Center.
Shawnee County Flood Data Viewer
FEMA FIRMette
Given the scale and range limitations of the FIRMette, it can be harder to make floodplain determinations in more urban environments. The Flood Map Viewer allows you to zoom in closer to a specific property that make floodplain determination much easier. Based on the Flood Map Viewer, the house appears to be located outside the boundary of AE Zone (100-year floodplain) and would not be subject to the mandatory flood insurance purchase requirement.
Getting Maps
NEW: Accessing DFIRM Maps Using FEMA’s Map Service Center
You can also produce a FIRMette (flood map) of your property through FEMA’s Map Service Center. Click here for instructions on how to prepare a FIRMette for the area or property of interest.
NEW: Flood Map Viewer
The flood map viewer is an interactive tool that allows you to view flood risk information in a digital format that can use aerial photography as the base map. As an online interactive tool, the Flood Map Viewer gives you the capability to zoom into specific areas to get a big picture of flood risk, or enter and go to a specific parcel address. The Flood Map Viewer is the same information as appears on the individual flood map panels, but in a digital format, gives you a greater range of options and flexibility in producing a flood map specific to your needs.
To access the Flood Map Viewer, click here.
Insurance Report
Flood Insurance Study (FIS) Report
A Flood Insurance Study is a narrative report of the community’s flood hazards that contains prior flooding information, descriptions of flooding sources, information on flood protection measures, and a description of the hydrologic and hydraulic methods used in the study.