Cedar Rapids 2008 Flood Statistics
Flood Magnitude
31.12 feet - Crest of Cedar River on Friday, June 13, 2008,- More than 10 square miles (14%) of the City.
- More than 80,000 tons of debris have been collected and removed to landfills
- Amazingly there were zero flood-related deaths
People
- 18,623 estimated persons in flood impacted area
- 120 families in flood areas receiving Section 8 housing assistance
- 1,360 estimated job loss as a result of the flood
- More than 57,218 flood recovery related volunteer hours donated
- 169 citizens in temporary shelters (during first three weeks of disaster)
- 268 currently occupy FEMA trailers
Property
- 7,198 affected parcels (5,390 residential)
- $2.4 billion estimated cost in damage to public infrastructure and future flood management options
- As many as 1,500 properties will be demolished – 71 prior to Jan. 1, 2009
- 86 farms in Linn County were damaged
Impacted Facilities
- City of Cedar Rapids:
- City Hall, Jail, Municipal Court Facilities, Central Fire, Central Library, and the Police HQ completely flooded and displaced
- Ground Transportation, municipal city transportation hub, completely displaced
- 3 of 4 city collector wells and 46 vertical wells disabled
- Linn County
- 10 damaged Linn County Buildings, including: Administrative Office Building (AOB), Correctional Center, Options of Linn County, AOB Annex, Elections Depot, Sheriff’s Office, County Courthouse, Mott Building, Witwer Building and Youth Shelter
- 486 property tax exempt facilities (govt., schools, churches, Red Cross etc.)
- 136 other (utilities and railroads etc...
Needs
- $5.74 billion total funding needed for recovery
- $5.43 billion gap in funding
- 888 new replacement housing units ($36.9 million est. funding gap)
- 1,049 total rehabilitated units needed ($36.7 million est. funding gap)
- 1,001 citizens expressed interest in buy-out options ($133 million est. funding gap)
- More than 700 businesses with estimated flood recovery need for as much as $1.5 billion
Flood Mitigation/remedy funding gap $478.5 million- $5 million for required US Army Corps of Engineer environmental study
- $54 million for Steam Heat rehabilitation/rebuild
- $120 million for waste-to-energy, co-generation and long-term sustainability initiatives
City of Cedar Rapids
- Flood damage estimate $3 billion
Linn County
- Flood damage estimate for public property: $60,400,000
- Estimated lost revenue: $4,407,000
- Linn County Planning & Development conducted over 600 damage assessments of flood-damaged structures in the unincorporated area of the county
- Green: 75 (minimal damage; safe to occupy)
- Yellow: 118 (limited entry)
- Red: 63 (unsafe)
- White: 347 (no placard)
City of Palo
- $22,000,000 total estimated flood related damages, City Property, Housing and Business
- Flood Damage Assessments: City of Palo:
- Green: 25 (minimal damage; safe to occupy)
- Yellow: 376 (safe to enter for limited purposes; cannot be occupied)
- Red: 19 (unsafe to enter; significant structural damage)
Cedar Rapids Downtown
- 900 (100%) people residing downtown displaced
- 450 (100%) downtown businesses impacted
- 35 (95%) restaurants impacted
- 9,000 (69%) people working downtown displaced
- 101 of 132 greater downtown blocks were impacted by the flood
Linn County Nonprofit Resource Center
- Nearly $36 million in total flood-related damages to Linn County nonprofit organizations
Cedar Rapids Community Schools
- Six District Facilities were flooded
- An estimated 1,834 students flood-affected (The school district has 33 schools and 17,000 students)
- The District sustained $33.5 million in flood damage
- 180 staff members were displaced
Community Development Organizations
- $258,200 in estimated total flood related damages
- Downtown District
- Cedar Rapids Area Convention and Visitors Bureau
- Entrepreneurial Development Center
Cedar Rapids Public Library
- Books damaged: 128,953
- Media items damaged (CDs, DVDs, etc.): 13,445
- Magazines damaged: 9,252
Churches, Worship Centers and Ministries
- 25 organizations displaced/destroyed
- $11.7 million in total flood related damages
Transportation
- Ground Transportation, municipal city transportation hub, completely displaced
- $90 million in total flood related damages to railroads
- $172 million in total flood related damages to future disaster evacuation routes
Environmental
- $51million agriculture land costs in Linn County (crop loss, top soil loss)
Museums, Cultural Arts and Recreation
- Eight iconic cultural assets displaced/destroyed
- Mother Mosque of America
- National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library
- African American Historical Museum & Cultural Center
- Theatre of Cedar Rapids
- Paramount Theatre
- Legion Arts (CSPS)
- Indian Creek Nature Center
- Science Station
- Ushers Ferry Historic Village
- $29.7 million in total flood related damages
Human Services
- 31 organizations displaced/destroyed
- $24.8 million in total flood related damages
Medical Centers
- $71.6 million in total flood related damages
Child Care
- 45 registered day care providers damaged displacing as many as 1,547 children
- $1.2 million in total flood related damages
Labor
- Half a million in total flood related damages to local labor sites and union halls