County Gets a 50 Percent Hike on Dam Insurance

The commission was told - as the very last item it considered from on a 53-point agenda at a 10-hour Tuesday meeting -- that taxpayers would be footing the bill for half as much coverage at the same price it paid last year for excess and regular property on the Lake Manatee Dam.

The dam's property insurance will cover the county up to $250 million instead of the $500 million it had last year at the same price.

There was good news: the county's wind coverage has not been dropped, as it has been by carriers for so many ordinary people across the state. It will still have $62 million in wind coverage, the same as last year.

The board ratified the insurance agreement on a 7-0 vote.

The county has not taken a direct hit from a hurricane since 1923, but the dam nearly burst in June 2003 when more than 20 inches of rain fell here in one day. Disaster was averted by county engineers who took action to relieve the mounting pressure on the dam.