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Hazard mitigation plan will address floodings, mass shootings and more
by Rick DeClue · News · October 08, 2015


How prepared is the city of West Branch for hazards such as flooding or a mass shooting like that in Oregon last week? The answers appear to be “somewhat” and “there is always more to do.”
After a brief presentation by Tim Malott, director of Cedar County’s Emergency Management Agency, the West Branch City Council voted to adopt the county’s Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan.

The 351-page document updates the 2011 plan outlining proactive steps that the county’s towns, school districts and other “stakeholders” can take to mitigate natural and man-made dangers.

Mitigation is a proactive strategy to lessen the impact of hazardous events and improve response to those events.

From top-ranked risks like tornadoes and floods to terrorism and transportation incidents, the stated purpose of the plan “is to reduce or eliminate long-term risk to people and property from hazards … to reduce future losses to the county and its communities resulting from hazard events.”

The plan makes West Branch and other jurisdictions eligible for certain grant programs through the Federal Emergency Management Agency to cover costs for mitigation projects. It also feeds into state and federal efforts of both FEMA and Homeland Security.

Malott said securing funds can be a complicated process working through both state and federal agencies. Levels of available funding vary, and can be determined by prior events. For example, the flooding of 2008 created extra funds based on a percentage of actual federal support in response to that event that could then be used for mitigation. Funding for mitigation projects are typically granted on a “first come, first serve” basis, he added.

The council seemed surprised at the potential uses for these funds such as acquiring flood-prone properties or even helping to acquire fire department vehicles. Mayor Roger Laughlin seized on the possibility of help to acquire land for wetland/retention to mitigate stormwater flooding the city from the north.

Malott said the project might qualify, and suggested coordinating with projects in the Cedar River basin, since Wapsinonoc Creek drains into the Cedar River.

While Malott said his agency attempts to consider every possible risk, and specifically touched on the recent school shooting in Oregon, the plan does not mention this hazard in its section on terrorism risk.

West Branch Police Chief Mike Horihan recently provided ALICE (Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate) active shooter training to new faculty in the school district. The department is preparing to provide age-appropriate ALICE education programs for students beginning next month.

Horihan said this training is part of his department’s budget, and does not depend on state or federal support.

Cedar County engaged AMEC Environment and Infrastructure, Inc. 18 months ago to guide the county through the planning process. Most of the $64,000 cost of AMEC’s contract was covered by grants, leaving the county with a $9,000 share for this five-year update.

West Branch was represented in the process by former Mayor Mark Worrell, Horihan and former Police Officer Alex Koch, Fire Chief Kevin Stoolman and assistant chiefs David Hosier and Josh Worrell, West Branch Community School District Director of Operations Joey M. Lande and Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum Director Tom Schwartz.

Along with representatives from across the county, the group identified and prioritized the following risks: tornado/windstorm, river flood, severe winter storm, hazardous materials, transportation incidents, flash flood, thunderstorm/lightning/hail, drought, grass/wildland fire, radiological incidents, terrorism, extreme heat, dam failure, earthquakes sinkholes and expansive soils.

According to City Administrator Matt Muckler, the most useful result of the process was a specific list of 15 mitigation actions identified for West Branch:

• Obtain missing data for the plan

• Acquire additional backup generators

• Identify vulnerable power service, electrical, and water distribution lines

• Construct additional storm shelters

• Make stormwater and drainage improvements

• Streambank stabilization, grade control structures, and channel improvements

• Conduct a drainage study/stormwater master plan

• Acquire flood-prone properties

• Continue to enforce local floodplain regulations

• Maintain good standing with the National Flood Insurance Program

• Continue to improve floodplain management practices

• Increase public awareness of natural hazards and how to protect people and property

• Continue to update emergency response equipment utilized by the West Branch Fire and Rescue

• Evaluate the outdoor warning siren system

• Seek funds that could relocate the Fire Station/Police Station out of the floodway

While Muckler said the last item is unlikely, the city is working on and has already made progress on a number of the recommendations such as backup generators and flooding issues. The city’s Stormwater Utility, initiation of stormwater best management practices, staff training, and a rainwater study to determine a location for another retention dam — probably north of downtown — represent efforts on flooding. And a community storm shelter can be part of the future community center project planned for Pedersen Valley, he added.

The school district also has storm shelters and backup generators in its long-term plan, with timelines of three to 10 years for those items.



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Editor's note: This story was updated Oct. 23, 2017, to correct the name Wapsinonoc Creek