The floods here are higher than anyone has ever seen. Literally, we crossed the high water mark recorded 150 years ago today and we expect to go another 4-5 feet higher, here. Down in Iowa City, there were some coffer dams in the river to allow for some construction, and some neighborhoods that would never otherwise have been in the flood zone are under water.
Now, some folks did build in a flood zone and I don’t have much sympathy for them, but there’s hundreds and hundreds who weren’t underwater back in 93, and are now.
Same thing happened with Katrina. There were areas on the Gulf Coast that had NEVER flooded, even with Camille in 1969, and the big hurricane of '47. Many had asked about flood insurance over the years, and were told they were not in a 'flood zone' so they didn't need it. Some bought it anyway, just in case, but most didn't. They returned to find slabs, if that, and were out of luck, because their regular homeowner's insurance covered almost nothing.