From the vantage point of many, Irene's blow was softer thananticipated. Nevertheless, the tropical storm left a trail ofbroken bodies—24 deaths have been reported—tree limbs, and frayedpower lines in its wake, compounding an already record-setting yearfor catastrophe loss.

Indeed, I.I.I. President Dr. Hartwig's pre-weekend storm lossprojections will likely ring true, as preliminary figures point to between $2 to $3 billion—furtherinflating the year's $18 billion in insured damages across thenation.

But for millions of East Coasters and the property and casualty(P&C) carriers that insure them, the scramble for exit routesamid paralyzed transit systems and post-evacuation inconveniencespale in comparison to the potentially massive implications offlooding, as heavy rains battered already saturated grounds.

In an interview on NPR's “All Things Considered,” Dr. Hartwigexplained that the affected areas are not accustomed to dealingwith hurricanes. Moreover, unless residing in a flood plain, manyhomeowners likely will have not purchased flood insurance.

Standard homeowners' policy coverage excludes loss resultingfrom surface water or groundwater entering the dwelling, and thatdoes not bode well for residents with wet basements and sulliedpersonal possessions. Outside those walls, crippled tree limbs posea hardship for homeowners as well.

“To begin repairing the roof, the actual tree must be removedfrom the premises [on which it toppled],” explained ChristineBarlow, associate editor of FC&Sat the National Underwriter Co. “This is included in the cost torepair the dwelling. However, removing downed trees from theproperty itself is restricted to a $1,000 limit, with $500 maximumper tree. In a large storm, the insured runs out of debris removalfunds quickly.”

Is that a reasonable estimate? It depends. Barlow said roofrepairs may necessitate negotiation on both sides, and, yes,out-of-pocket expense for the unlucky homeowners.

“Matching issues are quite common when repairing and/orreplacing roof shingles,” Barlow said. “Even if only a portion ofthe roof was directly damaged by the loss event—in this case, say,wind gusts from Irene—restoring the roof to its pre-loss conditionmay involve replacing other areas so that homeowners are not leftwith a roof of disjointed shingles.”

Diana Reitz, CPCU, editorial director of business compliancedepartment reference division at the National Underwriter Co.,added that the matching issue is of pronounced importance tocondominium owners or others subject to rules set forth by a givenhomeowners' association.

A Mighty Wind

To recap, if Irene's winds blew off the roof of a house or acommercial property, then coverage would be triggered and thusapplied. However, determining if the loss event was wind-drivenwater or wind/water itself may revive issues that persisted inKatrina claims handling.

Many opt out of flood insurance altogether, but thatpremium—even if seemingly exorbitant—is still much cheaper than ifa storm surge crashes into a house and then the homeowner mustbegin the arduous task of replacing soggy drywall and ripping outcarpet.

“We see a lot of policyholders who are not living close to theocean and erroneously assume they are not at risk,” said Barlow andReitz. “You have to also weigh the risks of overflowing rivers,streams, lakes, and surface water several inches deep.”