state officials advise homeowners to get flood insurance [Video]

Saying many residents whose homes were damaged in last month’s flooding were without flood insurance, state insurance officials are advising residents to get the coverage—no matter where they live.

On Aug. 18, torrential rain fell on towns and cities including Oxford, Southbury, Ansonia, Danbury and Woodbury. Rainfall of up to 16 inches caused severe flooding, resulting in millions of dollars of damage to hundreds of homes and businesses.

Since then, the Connecticut Insurance Department (CID) has heard from hundreds of residents who suffered damage but were not covered for it.

“They never thought they needed to worry about flood insurance before,” says Gerard O’Sullivan, Assistant Deputy Commissioner for Consumer Affairs at CID.

O’Sullivan says it’s important to get flood insurance, even you live outside of a FEMA-designated flood zone, like many of those affected on Aug. 18 did. CID reports that 25% of all flood losses in the U.S. occur …