$63M FEMA project would make Crisfield Resilient to up to 5 feet of flooding
CRISFIELD, Md – A FEMA proposal to the tune of 63 million dollars over two phases promises to be the largest infrastructure upgrade in history for the town of Crisfield, with the goal of making the town able to withstand up to 5 feet of stormwater.
“You’re going to be driving on a road that might be a little bit higher. You might see some areas of wetlands that have been restored with new plants and some other construction that will facilitate the drainage of water. But your home will likely stay the same,” said FEMA Partnership Coordinator Hailey Stern.
Stern tells 47ABC that the unveiling of the plan comes after 2 years of meetings as part of the FEMA Brick Resilient Communities program launched in 2021 and would divide the town’s needs into two stages, divided above and below Chesapeake Avenue.
The plan identifies several problem flooding sights, and is still in its planning stages, with the town needing to submit the plan back to FEMA which would pay for 90 percent of the cost.
The plan includes major upgrades, like better drainage, raised roadways, improved stormwater, collection, and wider births designed to withstand 5 feet of water from rain, coastal and nuisance flooding, one foot above the 4 feet experienced during the October 2021 flood.
“Five feet of water we see as something like a 50-year storm, which means that there’s a 2% annual chance of that level of flooding in the city every year, and so this project would reduce risks from that level of storm to,” Stern said.
Problem flooding areas include areas near Main Street and 7th Street, 7th Street and Broadway Avenue, and near the City’s Hospital and School.
“As far as Main Street goes, that will be surrounded by new bulkheads along the coast, as well as improved drainage that will run to probably some sort of underground storage system that would be connected to the aforementioned pump station,” said FEMA Contractor and Wetlands Scientist Jacob Berlinger.
Crisfield Mayor Darlene Taylor says the project represents a generational chance to go from damage mitigation to full protection for critical infrastructure.
“The hospital, you know, we can’t have a situation where we can’t get to those who are most in need of a service. So having those roads elevated close to that would also be a big impact for us,” Taylor said.
Berlinger says the infrastructure plans would be constructed in stages, with community input with a hopeful date of completion around 2028, but he says the community could start seeing benefits far sooner.
“We could see a reduction in the costs of flood insurance knowing these dollars are going into not just lower damage but offer that protection and upgrade, from water pumps, to storm water runoff,” he said.
