Help formulate the Hazardous Mitigation Plan in Holmes Co.
What happens to communities in times of disasters like flooding? That is what the crew in charge of the upcoming Holmes County Emergency Management Agency Hazard Mitigation Plan kickoff meeting Tuesday, July 22 at the Holmes County Health Department at 2600 Glen Drive in Millersburg hopes to build into its new plan.
The Holmes County Emergency Management Agency is beginning the update of the county’s Hazard Mitigation Plan, a federally required document that identifies risks from natural and man-made hazards and outlines long-term strategies to reduce or eliminate their impact.
According to Holmes EMA Director Jason Troyer, this plan is critical for protecting Holmes County’s communities and maintaining eligibility for FEMA mitigation funding, and in order to make it as comprehensive as possible, he said there is one missing component prior to making it happen: You.
“We need as many people’s input as possible to ensure the plan reflects our local concerns, vulnerabilities and priorities,” Troyer said. “Everyone’s participation will help shape the strategies that protect Holmes County residents, property and infrastructure to the best of our abilities.”
A Hazard Mitigation Plan is a strategic document developed by governments, communities or organizations to reduce or eliminate risks to people and property from natural and human-made hazards.
A Hazard Mitigation Plan helps prevent future hazard-related damage; reduces vulnerability to disasters like floods, storms, wildfires and other disasters; promotes sustainable recovery after disasters by avoiding repetitive losses; and qualifies adhering agencies for federal aid.
A HMP is proactive, focusing on long-term solutions to lessen the impact of future disasters rather than short-term emergency responses.
In order to get as many people involved in the decision-making process as possible, Holmes EMA and Resource Solutions Associates have teamed up to provide three Hazardous Mitigation Plan kickoff meetings that will allow the public to have a voice in how the plan is shaped.
“Every voice matters,” Troyer said. “When it comes to developing this mitigation plan, we want to hear from everyone. This is not the Holmes County Hazardous Mitigation Plan; it is the people’s plan. The more people we get to attend these meetings and give us valuable input, it is only going to make this plan better for our county.”
Troyer said once the plan is created, it will allow EMA, fire departments, law enforcement, health-related entities and county government better guidance in properly responding to a variety of responses in Holmes County.
“It’s important that all of our voices are heard in developing this plan,” Troyer said.
The kickoff meetings will take place Tuesday, July 22 at the Holmes County Health Department at 2600 Glen Drive in Millersburg. The public is invited to attend one of the three designed meetings, all of which will be the same. Each meeting will take approximately 90 minutes with the trio of meetings slated for 9 a.m., 1 p.m. and 5 p.m.
Troyer said each meeting will have complimentary food and beverages available, pastries in the morning session, deli meats in the noon meeting, and pizza in the evening session.
Sandy Hovest from Resource Solutions Associates met with a group for the initial strategic planning session on Thursday, June 26 and said while there is already work taking place to bring local elected and appointed officials, public safety members, health care providers, economic and community leaders, and other influential people throughout the county, nothing compares to receiving input from the people who live and work in the county, who have experienced disasters and events firsthand and have experienced how different communities have come together to respond to events like floods, fires, tornadoes and other disastrous events.
“How local individuals and families have experienced disasters is probably how many people experienced it, but the people in the big positions don’t know about those experiences,” Hovest said. “That experience and input becomes very important because part of mitigation is not only saving the jurisdiction’s money and using public money effectively, but also trying to prevent damage local people have to pay for out of pocket through increased insurance premiums, deductibles or uninsured loss. Finding that kind of angst and loss from storms is really important in knowing how families are affected following disasters.”
She said oftentimes elected officials don’t hear these agonizing stories of loss, and these meetings provide a voice to the people to provide specifics.
According to Hovest, the mitigation plan project has a cost of $34,000 attached to it. While a grant will cover $25,500, the local match portion is $8,500.
While it is imperative to have all local voices heard in the planning process, another reason there is a desire to get as many people as possible to attend is because FEMA places a value of $63.07 on every volunteer hour accrued. That means that in attending the meeting, each person will add that accrued value to the matching grant.
“We invite everyone to attend, and we’re asking all of you to encourage anyone you see fit to attend to also join us to provide input,” Troyer said. “Our soul interest is developing a working mitigation plan that works for all of us. The broader representation we have at these meetings, the better and more comprehensive our mitigation plan will be.”
Those wishing to attend and have their voice heard concerning this policy should RSVP Troyer at jtroyer@co.holmes.oh.us by Friday, July 18 prior to the meeting date.
“We look forward to everyone’s valuable input and thank you in advance for your commitment to building a more resilient Holmes County,” Troyer said.
Anyone with questions prior to the meetings may call Troyer at 330-674-0989, Hovest at 419-602-7488 or Rick Evans at 419-989-3462.