Delta county still dealing with property impacted by 2011 flood

CLEVELAND — Bolivar County is hosting a meeting on July 25 to give local residents some guidance on how to comply with government requires for flooded structures.

Local officials tell the Bolivar Commercial there are some concerns that not everyone is adhering to FEMA’s policies laid out in the National Flood Insurance Program as clean-up and rebuilding continues in western Bolivar County from last spring’s flooding from the Mississippi River.

Up and down the river, crests came close to or passed records set in 1927 and 1937. The massive levee system constructed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers held. Inside the levees, thousands of acres were inundated.

Bill Quinton, director of the county’s Emergency Management Agency, said the county is preparing to enforce the NFIP rules and regulations as well as the Bolivar County Flood Ordinance plan that is already in place.

“Up to this point we have not been enforcing the ordinances that are in place, but that is about to change.

“We will begin enforcing the laws shortly after hosting this meeting so we invite everyone with an interest on the inside of the levee to be present in order to be fully informed on the expectations of what to do with their property,” said Quinton.

The meeting at the Bolivar County Expo Center in Cleveland will include officials from various county departments and the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency.

The meeting will cover questions about demolition, cleanup, repairing and rebuilding of flooded structures.