Southern California A wet, cool winter is forecast for most of the southern U.S., federal forecasters announced
With a powerful El Niño already underway in the Pacific Ocean and chances increasing for strong winter rains, federal emergency officials have urged Californians to buy flood insurance before it’s too late. Purchasing insurance is the most powerful action residents can take against El Niño, said Roy Wright, FEMA's deputy associate administrator for insurance and mitigation, on Friday. "If there was ever a time to buy flood insurance, this is the time," said Mr. Wright at a press conference. "You cannot get it at the last minute. There's a 30-day wait period for new flood insurance policies to go into effect," he said. Flood insurance is funded through the federal government, due to a 1968 law enacted after many private companies declined to offer policies following heavy losses. According to Wright, flood insurance policies for people in high-risk areas can cost $1,000 or a more a year. Policies for people outside those high-risk areas, which are called "preferred risk" policies, are cheaper and can range from about $140 to $500 a year. "That is often within someone's reach in terms of the kind of investment they can make to buy down their risk," he said. "Even if you buy that policy for only one year, this is the year to buy it." California residents can rate their flood risk and get insurance quotes on FloodSmart.gov, hosted by FEMA