Following a major disaster,
the long process of recovery
and rebuilding begins. A natural
human response is to question “Why
did this happen?” Then,
ultimately we begin to ask “How
can we prevent this from happening
again?” In Emergency
Management, this is called
mitigation - actions that we
can take before a disaster
or when we rebuild after a
disaster - that will reduce
our risk of property damage
or loss of life in the future.
In 2000, the State of Florida
Division of Emergency Management
(DEM) contracted with the cities
and counties to prepare a county-wide
Local Mitigation Strategy or
LMS. Through the local emergency
management agency, a committee
was established, composed of
representatives from throughout
the county charged with creating
the LMS which would ultimately
be adopted by every community
in the county.
Assessing Our Risk
 The LMS is composed of four
major sections. The first is
the Vulnerability Assessment
which identifies the hazards
that each community could face
and the probability of that
hazard. Hurricanes and tropical
storms pose the greatest risk
to potential loss of life,
devastating property damage
and economic and environmental
impacts. However, in terms
of greater probability, in
the Tampa Bay Region, the number
one hazard is flooding which
causes more damage than all
other hazards combined. Second,
is the risk of a hazardous
material incident. Although
major chemical emergencies
are extremely rare, there always
remains a chance that one will
occur despite the precautions
that have been taken by the
chemical users/ producers/
carriers and emergency responders.
Placing third are severe winds
from tropical storms, hurricanes
and tornadoes. Wildfires, lightning,
droughts, freezes, and sink
holes are also on the list.
The events of September 11,
2001 demonstrated tragically
that we are not immune to violence
and terrorism. While these
types of “man-made” disasters
were addressed in the LMS and
the emergency management community,
the threat has increased and
initiated changes in security
and policy. This is particularly
true with regard to the airports,
sea ports, military bases and
utilities in the Tampa Bay
Region.
Strategies to Reduce our Risk
 The second step is to identify
ways to minimize our risk and
potential loss from these hazards.
Guiding Principals — those
policies, regulations and procedures
used by local officials to
make decisions related to safety — were
earmarked and evaluated to
determine their true effectiveness
and where, if appropriate,
changes were needed. Based
on this evaluation, Mitigation
Strategies were identified
and the movement toward a safer
community was made a top priority.
Actions To Take
 The fourth step in the process
was to identify Mitigation
Projects as part of the overall
County Mitigation Strategy.
The Mitigation Projects represent
a prioritized list of projects
aimed at making our community
safer.
Because of the serious public
shelter shortfall in the Tampa
Bay Region one of the top priorities
was “fortifying” or
strengthening our schools so
they can serve as shelters
in a severe weather emergency. “Fortifying” or “hardening” a
structure usually means protecting
the windows and doors, and
reinforcing the roof and walls.
The lists of Mitigation Projects
also include the hardening
of other critical facilities
like fire stations, city hall,
the courthouse, and community
centers. Also on the list are
drainage improvements and other
flood mitigation projects as
well as public education and
training.
Recovery & Rebuilding
 While the counties have worked
with the State of Florida and
the Federal Emergency Management
Agency (FEMA) to fund some
of these projects over the
last two years, the project
list also has another purpose.
After a major disaster, mitigation
funds are made available to
affected communities to assist
in recovery and redevelopment.
These mitigation funds, administered
by FEMA, can be directed toward
specific projects - that will
reduce future risk - if the
community has the project identified
and “ready to go.” One
purpose of the LMS is to give
the state and local governments
that advantage in the aftermath
of a disaster.
Where to Find More Information
The true value of the LMS
is that it is a dynamic document
which is updated and revised
annually as goals are reached
or priorities shifted. For
more information about preparedness
and mitigation, or the LMS,
residents can visit the following
web sites:
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