ANNADA (AP) – For thousands of Missouri residents, flood insurance premiums are about to go up. 

 

People living in flood plains around the nation will soon see a jump in premiums through the National Flood Insurance Program, though a new law softens the blow a bit.

Under a 2012 statute, premiums could have risen from $2,000 annually to $13,000, but residential rate hikes are now limited to 18 percent a year.

In Missouri, people who live near the river are often poor or on fixed incomes. Dropping insurance isn’t an option for most because banks require mortgage holders to have it.

Selling property that’s so costly to insure is problematic.

Willie Richter, the mayor of West Alton, believes many people will simply be forced to abandon their homes.