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344 <br /> Typically, a FIS is prepared by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). <br /> In this instance the new FIS for Orange County was produced through a unique <br /> cooperative partnership between the State of North Carolina and FEMA. The State and <br /> FEMA have entered into a Cooperating Technical State (CTS) agreement to produce <br /> and maintain the FIS report as well as accompanying digital copies of the Flood <br /> Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) for North Carolina. <br /> What exactly is a Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM)? <br /> A FIRM is an official map of a community displaying the floodplains, more explicitly <br /> special hazard areas and risk premium zones, as delineated by FEMA. The FIRM is the <br /> basis for floodplain management, mitigation, and insurance activities in the National <br /> Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). <br /> FIRMs are constantly being updated due to changes in geography, construction, <br /> mitigation activities, and meteorological events. As a result it is beneficial for individuals <br /> to reach out to the County floodplain manager to verify the current 'status' of a given <br /> property with respect to an accurate determination on compliance with floodplain <br /> regulations. <br /> What do FIRMs display? <br /> A FIRM will generally show: <br /> 1. Roads and map land marks, <br /> 2. A community's base flood elevations, <br /> 3. Flood zones, <br /> 4. Floodplain boundaries — areas having a 1-percent (1%) annual chance of <br /> flooding (commonly referred to as the 100-year flood) and areas having a 0.2- <br /> percent (0.2%) annual chance of flooding (commonly referred to as the 500-year <br /> flood). <br /> As a general note, areas that fall within the 1% (i.e. 100-year flood) boundary are called <br /> special flood hazard areas (SFHAs) and they are further divided into insurance risk <br /> zones. <br /> So if property is shown on a FIRM as being located within an area having a 1- <br /> percent (1%) annual chance of flooding does that mean it will only flood 1 in 100 <br /> years? <br /> Unfortunately, no. This is a common misconception. This area has a 1% chance of <br /> flooding to identified levels depicted on the FIRM in any given year. It is not meant to <br /> indicate that a flood will reach identified levels once every 100 years. <br /> How are FIRMs used? <br />