Kingfisher Flood Mitigation and Land Acquisition
City of Kingfisher, Oklahoma
The City of Kingfisher, Oklahoma has dealt with flooding issues since its founding at the end of the 19th century.
After experiencing devastating flooding during 2007’s Tropical Storm Erin, the City contacted Meshek & Associates about a stream gauge. While this solution would have provided more advanced flood warning, it would not have mitigated the effects of impending flood waters on the properties in harm’s way.
Instead, Meshek helped the City leverage $3 million in state bond funds as a local match for a $14 million FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP). After the HMGP grant was approved, the City of Kingfisher again contracted with Meshek to manage the grant and perform land acquisition and relocation services.
Of the properties included in the voluntary acquisition program, nearly 100 have been acquired, demolished, and removed from the floodplain.
The City flooded again in 2019, but because most of the properties had been removed from the area, it did not pose a serious risk to the community.
