Recent rains over the past month have been beneficial for relieving drought around Pagosa Country, but, with that, multiple homes and businesses in the community have had to deal with cleaning up and rebuilding after having their property damaged by flooding from the exterior.
Jean Hietala, owner of Made In Colorado Shoppe located on Eagle Drive, reported that she had to close down from July 1 through July 9 due to more than an inch of water running through the store.
Hietala mentioned that she has operated her shop at that location for 18 years, and the building has been there since the 1980s with no reports of flooding occurring until now.
She noted that the cause of flooding was due in part to a clogged drainage behind her shop, and the “alleyway pushes water” straight into the backside of her building, which is shared with Sun Glass.
Hietala explained that water came through walls of the building and the backdoor entrance.
“Everything ran downhill,” she said.
Areas of Pagosa Country received more than 2 inches of rain from June 27 through July 1, according to reports on the community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network.
Hietala explained that when she showed up on Monday, July 1, at her store, she discovered her building had flooded, noting there was “mud throughout the store.”
She also mentioned that the carpet had to be pulled up and multiple displays and boxes of products were damaged.
Hietala mentioned that she was not the only business owner affected in the area, noting that business in the Mountain View Plaza also had flood damage occur.
“Being up on the top of a hill, you don’t think you’re ever going to flood,” she said.
She explained that her insurance coverage will not cover the damages due to the flooding coming from an exterior source, and that she would have needed an additional exterior flooding coverage added to her plan.
Lars Schneider with Mountain Men Disaster Mitigation, a local disaster cleanup and mitigation company, explained that most homeowners and business owners do not have coverage for flooding caused by “outside water in,” which includes situations like storm water and sewer backups.
Schnieder noted that, over the past couple of weeks, his company has been working on eight different flooded properties around the community.
“Those are just the people that have called us,” he said, explaining that some people may just be cleaning it up as they go.
Schneider noted that this can be problematic due to the possibility of mold sprouting rather quickly with the high levels of bacteria in stormwater.
“The rains have been hard,” he said, explaining the most common types of structures being affected are basements, walk-out style basements and properties along hillsides.
“It’s kind of everywhere in Pagosa,” he added.
Schneider mentioned that these repairs can be costly, noting a current project that is costing a homeowner approximately $75,000 out of pocket due to the damage not being covered by their insurance.
“I would love it if everyone had coverage,” he said. “People just don’t know they’re not covered for these things.”
Schneider explained that unless you are located in a flood zone, it is not typical to have exterior-caused flood coverage.
“It not being covered is normal,” Schneider said.
He noted that most people have coverage for flooding caused from the interior of a home, such as sink pipe bursting, but not if a utility company has a backup in its system that leads to flooding in a home.
“Sewer backup from outside the home is another extremely important one to have,” he said.
He noted that if a city’s sewage system backs into a home, “most people’s coverage won’t cover you.”
Schneider spoke about how these sort of disasters can cost homeowners $100,000 to fix without insurance.
“That kills people financially,” he said.
He explained that if you are not located in a flood zone, additional flood coverage may only cost about $30 a year.
“That small amount of add-on will keep people from getting bankrupted,” he said, noting that anyone can get additional flood insurance.
He also noted the option of going through the Red Cross, which provides a separate flood insurance policy to homeowners.
Schneider went on to mention how he and his partner, Bruce Jones, have been in the Pagosa community for more than a combined total of 60 years and that they usually know those affected personally.
“We know everyone being affected, and there’s no nothing more traumatic to homeowners when they come home and their house is flooded or sewer’s backed up ... and then also find out they’re financially screwed because they don’t have the coverage,” Schneider said.
Tricia Vega, an insurance broker at Hometown Insurance, also noted that additional flood insurance can be beneficial, but that people simply don’t know about it.
“It’s always good to evaluate your plan every single year,” Vega said, noting that needs may change every year.
Vega also recommends adding on sewer and waterline backup to traditional insurance plans.
She explained that if you are in a flood zone, it may cost a couple thousand dollars to get flood coverage and that homeowners would need to go through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
However, she noted, if the property is not in a flood zone, options for additional flood coverage may cost around $60 a year.
Vega also mentioned that folks located within a flood zone can get an elevation certificate through FEMA that will help reduce the cost of their insurance.
Vega noted she has been with Hometown Insurance for about seven years and has only written five required flood insurance policies and only a couple of nonrequired policies, mentioning that most people don’t know about their options for flood coverage.
clayton@pagosasun.com
