Flash Flooding in OKC Metro Raises Importance of Insurance

In the middle of the night on June 4, Jennifer Cox-Gordon woke up to a surprise.

"I stepped in water coming out of my bedroom," she said. Floodwaters were so high, that her fridge was floating through the house.

She has lived in a Seminole neighborhood for 10 years and has never had any issues with flooding before. When she and her husband bought the home, the bank advised flood insurance wasn't necessary.

"We canceled our flood insurance," she said. "And it turned out we needed it."

Opting out of flood insurance, only to be shocked with needing it later on, is a common encounter for Commissioner Glen Mulready at the Oklahoma Insurance Department. He remembers the same happening in Tulsa in 2019.

"They got a letter one day and the bank said the flood mapping has changed," Mulready said about homeowners he spoke with during the Tulsa floods. "You're no longer required to carry flood insurance.' So, what did they do? They drop the coverage. And now, here they are with four feet of water in their home. They clearly needed flood insurance."

Mulready recommends flood insurance and pointed to cheaper plans that have entered the market in recent years.

"That has really evolved over the last handful of years," Mulready added. "That was really not in play before."

Cox-Gordon and her family are left to overcome the expense on their own. She has started a GoFundMe to help and said family and friends have donated materials and money to start on their repairs.

Homeowners can learn more about flood insurance in Oklahoma on the insurance department's website.