It Starts with a Drop of Water

Can you picture a drop or rain water falling to the earth. It and many more drops begin falling to the ground to become a flood. FEMA calls this flood of raindrops that occur on an average of once in 100 years as the type of flood that can determine the Base Flood Elevation or BFE. The BFE is an elevation (contour line) on a creek or drainage way that can be shown by FEMA on their Flood Maps. The BFE line has an elevation shown on it that we as surveyors can find on the ground to compare to actual elevations on the ground. That way we can see if the BFE flood elevation is above or below any real points we measure near to that BFE line or interpolated between two BFE lines.

FEMA also "shade areas" to indicate areas that flood without a BFE line. So how do we determine the "BFE flood" Elevation for the map areas without a BFE line?

You need the "Basis of BFE Determination" which FEMA either will not provide you or is making it so difficult that most surveyors give up in the process trying.

Once understand what it takes to determine the BFE, then it is all a matter of surveying and plugging in all the data into the formulae or into a program that will result in a BFE. The greatest Mystery is the quantity of rain over a period of time that it takes to create a BFE STORM. You would think that someone who shades those maps would have such data. So where is it and who and what determines that 100 year RARE RAIN?

My first thoughts would be climate data statistics. Who has those statistics? If they do then how are they justified or determined when we do not have access to the data over thousands of years or even hundreds of years of rain gages or flow gages around the world? Does someone consult with the ALMIGHTY to get this data from HIM or what?

I will find out while I am alive in this system or later in a new system and you can help solve this mystery by searching and seeking and asking questions. Who will crack the FEMA MYSTERY?