You know us: the folks who live on the Presumpscot River Estuary in Portland.
You know: that body of water that has never flooded in the recorded history of mankind, yet is listed as a flood zone on Federal Emergency Management Agency maps, forcing people to pay huge flood insurance premiums for no reason whatsoever.
Surely you remember the deluge of October 1996, when 19.2 inches of rain fell on Portland in a two-day period, setting an all-time record. That storm was categorized as a 500-year event. Not a single property in the East Deering neighborhood was damaged – not one!
It is really time for FEMA to open its eyes and see the financial burden the agency is placing on good, hardworking people without just cause.
John P. Rague
Portland
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