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<br /> <br />.r <br />.:.~~~ <br />'..'~.; . <br /> <br />production caused by wet weather in the Midwest and <br />drought in the Southeast in 1993. TIlis loss to fanners <br />was a gain for taxpayers since subsidies represent <br />transfer payments. For corn, these deficiency payments <br />were reduced by more than $2.6 billion." These price' <br />effects and subsequent reduction in deficiency payments <br />will be temporary, if the 1994 crop supply returns to <br />past levels. <br /> <br />Conclusion: The majority of 1993 <br />agricultural damages in the Midwest were <br />caused by wet soil conditions and inundation <br />in upland areas, Damage to inundated <br />cropland in the floodplain was significant <br />with almost complete crop losses behind <br />failed levees. Areas affected by severe <br />erosion and deposition may suffer long-term <br />loss of productivity. <br /> <br />Residences and Businesses <br /> <br />Estimates vary on the number of homes flooded and <br />families impacted by the Midwest flood. Surveys made <br />by Red Cross workers immediately after the floods <br /> <br />W.C"-."'- <br /> <br />THE FLOOD OF 1993 <br /> <br /> <br />identified more than 55,000 flooded residences.'" <br />FEMA subsequently verified these damages with Red <br />Cross chapters and developed an updated estimate of <br />70,545 residences." The New York Times estimated <br />that more than 84,000 residences were damaged." As <br />of April 11, 1994, the federal government had received <br />167,224 registrations for individual assistance and <br />112,042 applications for the Disaster Housing Program. <br />Among this latter group, 89,734 applications have been <br />approved. The Disaster Housing Program data <br />indicates that more than 100,000 residences were <br />flooded." <br /> <br />I. <br />x <br /> <br />The f1nctuating numbers illustrate an overlooked <br />characteristic of this flood. While the media focused on <br />flooding of communities along the main stem <br />Mississippi and Missouri rivers and their major <br />tributaries, at least as many families were impacted by <br />flooded basements due to high groundwater, overloaded <br />stonn sewer systems, or sewer back-up. Many of the <br />homes with flooded basements were not in the loo-year <br />floodplain or behind levees that overtopped or failed. <br />In Cook County, Illinois, for instance, large nwnbers of <br />homes on the south and west sides of Chicago had <br />basement flooding due to stonnwater and sewer back-up <br />caused by heavy rainfall which overwhelmed the city's <br />combined storm and sanitary sewer system. The county <br />was eventually added to the Illinois disaster declaration <br />even though this type of damage generally does)lot <br />warrant inclusion. Over half of the 60,448 regi~trations <br />for individual disaster assistance in Illinois and 20 <br /> <br />17 <br />