Fayette County Hazard Mitigation Plan

Description

Fayette County, Ohio’s previous Hazard Mitigation Plan took effect in July 2007, after adoption by the county and all participating municipalities, and expired in July 2012. This plan serves as an update to the 2007 Plan. Under the Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000, (DMA2K), local jurisdictions must have a disaster mitigation plan in place to receive funds from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in the event of a natural or man-made disaster. This Plan meets the criteria as set forth by FEMA in the DMA2K and provides the county and its participating municipalities with a comprehensive guide for future mitigation efforts to combat the hazards that affect their communities. Man-made and natural hazards and disasters present a variety of risks to lives, businesses, and property. Fayette County recognizes the effectiveness of proper mitigation planning to prepare for and ultimately minimize the social, environmental, and economic costs of such events. Fayette County officials, local jurisdiction representatives, and other interested stakeholders dedicated their time and efforts to develop this updated Fayette County Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan (the Plan) with assistance from the Ohio Emergency Management Agency (OEMA), FEMA, and Professor Kim Burton’s comprehensive planning studio class of city and regional planning graduate students at The Ohio State University. Six sections comprise this Plan, detailing the methods, analysis and discussion surrounding the various hazards that threaten Fayette County and its jurisdictions. This Introduction (Section 1) includes a discussion about the general purpose and goals that the county wishes to achieve throughout the development and implementation of the Plan, along with a summary of the Plan’s contents. Section 2 includes a short description of Fayette County and of each of the participating jurisdictions, including their history, population, and other general information. Section 3 of this Plan details the process involved in the development of this plan, including a description of who participated in the process, how community involvement was incorporated, what hazards were included in the plan and why, and how the Plan was composed through meetings, reviews, and evaluations. Section 4 contains the Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment (HIRA) process: descriptions and analysis of the potential natural and man-made hazards that could affect the county. Section 4 includes a comprehensive list of the natural and man-made hazards that are considered in the mitigation plan and a list of excluded hazards, including the reason for their exclusion. Each hazard is subsequently profiled by discussing its nature, location, extent, historical impact on Fayette County (if applicable), and likelihood of occurrence. Each hazard profile concludes with an assessment of the county’s vulnerability to the hazard, including the number of vulnerable structures and/or crops and their asset values, including critical facilities and publicly owned structures. Section 5 then outlines the goals, strategies and actions for the county and its jurisdictions. The proposed actions are presented in tables, grouped by which hazard they principally address. They are ranked from highest to lowest priority, according to feedback received from county officials and participating jurisdictions and stakeholders. Section 6 is a summary of the proposed Plan adoption and maintenance schedule.