Florida SHMPoints
Providing insightful mitigation news and information from around the State of Florida.
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Meet the Newest Members of the Team!
Jamie Leigh Price
Mitigation Planner
LMS Liaison Regions 5, 6, 7
Jamie Leigh began her work in
the Mitigation Bureau as an
intern in January. She was
brought on to the team in
February. Jamie Leigh’s passion
for Emergency Management can
be traced back to when she was a
volunteer during the 2004, 2005,
and 2006 hurricane seasons as a
teenager. She earned her Master’s in Public Administration
from Florida State University in May. Jamie Leigh enjoys
working closely with local governments and looks forward to
continuing to build the local-state relationship. She is the
proud mom to her 4 year old fur baby, a chihuahua terrier
named Totala.
Michael Wallick
Mitigation Planner
LMS Liaison Regions 3, 4
Michael Wallick recently graduated
in the spring of 2014 with a
Master’s of Science in Planning
from Florida State University. His
specialization was Land Use and
Comprehensive Planning. Michael
started his position as a Mitigation
Planner immediately after
graduating and has been with the
Florida Division of Emergency Management for a little over a
month. He really enjoys how the position has offered training
and learning experiences in different settings. Michael had the
pleasure of attending the Governor’s Hurricane Conference and
participated in the statewide hurricane exercise. Outside of work,
he enjoys traveling, playing golf, and attending FSU athletic
events.
Vanessa Castillo
Junior Mitigation Planner
Vanessa began her work with
FDEM’s Mitigation Bureau in
April. She will obtain a Master’s
Degree in Urban Planning from
Florida State University in
August 2014. Her prior work
experience includes community
organizing and microenterprise
development with the US Peace
Corps. She looks forward to
collaborating with counties, jurisdictions, and private
organizations to create mitigation strategies that encourage
resilient and sustainable communities. Vanessa enjoys
cycling, musing about city planning, and eating pizza in all its
forms.
Chad Dumas
Mitigation Intern
Chad is a senior at FSU studying
meteorology. Through networking
and the FSU Meteorology
Department, he was presented with
the opportunity to volunteer as an
intern in the mitigation and
meteorology departments at FDEM.
Chad has been interning since midMay, and already feels at home. He
is eager to learn about mitigating the
effects of damaging weather as well as other hazards that
threaten our state. Being a Florida native, Chad was drawn to
DEM with the notion of giving back to his home state and
serving the public. Besides anything to do with the weather,
Chad also enjoy playing music and cooking. He is thankful for
this opportunity and hopes to learn a lot.
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Jacksonville selected for Rockefeller
Foundation’s “100 Resilient Cities” Program
By: Vanessa Castillo
technical support to develop and
implement a resilience plan and
create a position for a Chief
Resilience
Officer.
Representatives from a variety of
Jacksonville’s
agencies,
including
Emergency
Preparedness,
are
currently
developing the city’s Resilience
Strategy—a
prerequisite
to
secure the contract with the
Rockefeller Foundation. Steven
Woodard,
Jacksonville’s
Emergency Manager, is the
primary point-of-contact for the program. The city has not yet
identified a Chief Resilience Officer. It should be noted that
the contract is not finalized and is contingent upon the
completion of the city’s Resilience
What is resilience? In Jacksonville it
Strategy. Once completed, more
means securing a rapidly growing city’s
information concerning specific
population, its communication and
Resilienceis“thecapacity...to
projects will be available.
transportation infrastructure, and other
vital resources against the impacts of
survive,adapt,andgrowno
Other members of the Centennial
serious natural hazards, such as
matterwhatkindsofchronic
Challenge include New York City
tropical storms and hurricanes. The
and
New
Orleans,
cities
stressesandacuteshocksthey
Rockefeller Foundation has defined
experiencing similar threats to
resilience as the “capacity of individual
experience.”
tropical storms and hurricanes as
communities, institutions, businesses,
Jacksonville. NYC and New Orleans
and systems within a city to survive,
are adopting policies, like new zoning
adapt, and grow no matter what kinds of
chronic stresses and acute shocks they experience.” It regulations and wetland conservation, to mitigate future
characterizes five unique pillars of resilience: constant impacts comparable to what they incurred from Hurricanes
learning, rapid rebound, limited or “safe” failure, flexibility, Sandy and Katrina, respectively. NYC adopted new zoning
and spare capacity. The program distinguishes cities from all regulations in 2013 to protect communities from future
over the world—including from Africa, Europe, the Middle flooding losses. New ordinances enforce higher building
East, and Asia—creating a network of true world leaders in the heights in flood prone areas, “[allowing] property owners to
comply with FEMA flood standards”. Henceforth, the lowest
field.
habitable floor will be built at least two feet above base flood
Jacksonville was selected for this honor due to its elevation (a buffer also known as “freeboard”). NYC’s
demonstrated commitment to resiliency practices. The city Department of City Planning simultaneously launched the
strictly enforces Florida’s Building Code; is accredited by the “Resilient Neighborhoods Initiative,” to educate communities
Emergency Management Accredited Program (EMAP); in the flood zone on coastal risks affecting land use, zoning,
supports “green” construction on the University of North FL and development.
Campus; and encourages the use of FEMA’s Severe Repetitive
Information for this article was obtained from the
Loss (SRL) funding to either elevate flood-prone structures or
Foundation’s
website:
to acquire such properties to convert them to open space and Rockefeller
http://100resilientcities.rockefellerfoundation.org/resilience;
thus, reduce the impact of future flooding.
and with guidance from John Shaw and Laura D’Alisera at the
Once finalized, the program will provide the city with City of Jacksonville’s Division of Emergency Preparedness.
Mitigation practices—sustained
actions to reduce the impacts of
natural disasters—become ever more
imperative as the world experiences
the varied effects of changing
climates. Building resilient urban
cores is part of that, a notion
supported by the Rockefeller
Foundation’s 100 Resilient Cities
Centennial Challenge, launched in
February
2013.
This
project
spotlights 100 world cities that the
Foundation has deemed leading
practitioners of resilience and
mitigation activities. Among these is Florida’s very own
Jacksonville.
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Best Practices:
City of Tamarac RCMP Projects
By: Angela Bauldree
As Residential Construction Mitigation Program (RCMP)
fund recipients for the fourth year in a row, the City of
Tamarac and its residents are becoming more and more
prepared for the future in South Florida and all its climate
related uncertainties.
The RCMP funds allow the City to help residents protect
their home with improvements such as re-roofing, impact
resistant windows and doors, or aluminum panel shutters. The
funds have been used in the improvement of single family
homes, illustrated by the structure spotlighted below. Over the
past four years 33 residents have benefited from the program.
The City leverages other State and Federal home rehabilitation
funds with RCMP to improve the homes of its low income
residents. The average RCMP funds expended per property
are $12,325 with a matching fund from the City averaging
$17,500.
Coordination with State RCMP staff has vastly improved
over the years allowing the City to take full advantage of the
awarded funds and meet the grants timeframe requirements.
Another advantage to the RCMP for Tamarac’s residents is
that the funds expended on mitigation activities are grants,
which serve to reduce overall home rehabilitation loan
amounts recorded on individual properties.
The RCMP funds, leveraged with State and Federal
funding, allow the City to assist an average of seven additional
homeowners each year than it would be able to without the
funds. In Tamarac – an aging community – a large percentage
of properties are in need of mitigation related improvements,
which the RCMP funds enable, at no expense to the
homeowner. For example, recipients of RCMP funds have
been able to apply for wind mitigation discounts through their
insurance providers. Since all RCMP recipients in Tamarac
are low income households, the additional annual savings
associated with these improvements reduce their overall
housing costs – contributing to an improved quality of life.
The City of Tamarac is grateful for the opportunity to provide
its residents with such a profound health and safety benefit.
The RCMP is implemented as part of the Florida
Hurricane Catastrophe Fund, with the purpose of aiding low
homeowners with mitigation practices when rehabilitating
their homes. The program finances mitigation activities such
as retrofits, inspections, and construction or modification of
building components designed to increase a structure’s ability
to withstand hurricane-force winds. As witnessed in the City
of Tamarac, taking advantage of this program has resulted in
tangible benefits for Florida residents.
For more information about RCMP, visit the following
link: http://www.floridadisaster.org/Mitigation/RCMP/
index.htm
Funding and technical support are available for
jurisdictions, counties, and non-profit organizations. Groups
interested may contact Meredith Van Valkenburgh at
Meredith.VanValkenburgh@em.myflorida.com or call (850)
413-9946.
The Division provides a Hurricane Retrofit Guide to aid
both technicians and non-technical homeowners prepare
residences for current and future storm seasons: http://
www.floridadisaster.org/mitigation/rcmp/strengthen/Tutorial/
The Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety
(IBHS) provides information on hazard risks facing
communities across the U.S. and ways to protect and prepare
your home for these impacts: http://www.disastersafety.org/
FLASH—a non-profit organization we highlighted in our
December 2013 SHMPoints—provides more information on
strengthening homes against potential disasters. http://
www.flash.org/
Left: One of the homes that was
rehabilitated through the City of
Tamarac’s RCMP efforts before
completion of the project.
Right: The same home after the
project was completed.
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Hazard Profile: Hurricanes
Florida has quite the
hurricane history – with
tropical cyclone landfalls
dating back as far as our
earliest weather records
go. There is a common
misconception that only
certain
portions
of
Florida’s
coastline
experience
hurricane
landfalls; yet, records
dating back to the 1850s
tell us otherwise. All of
Florida’s coastlines have
witnessed at least one
landfall over the past 160
years. Florida is prone to
tropical cyclones because
of its extensive coastline,
most of which is
surrounded by warm
tropical waters. Both the
Gulf of Mexico and
Atlantic Ocean provide
favorable conditions for
storms to form and
strengthen, allowing for many threats close to home.
Hurricanes pose a number of problems for the state of
Florida, often times wreaking havoc on communities across
the state by way of strong winds, tornadoes, floods, storm
surge, and strong rip currents.
 Strong winds from tropical systems can cause severe
roof and structural damage to homes and buildings, as
well as down power lines and trees.
 Tropical cyclones can be prolific tornado producers with
the majority of these forming more than 100 miles from
the storms center in the outer rainbands.
 Tropical systems result in heavy flooding as rainbands
tend to linger over areas for long periods of time
saturating soils, elevating river levels, and flooding
roadways.
 Storm surge, or the rise in water level above normal tidal
cycles, can push water several miles inland – up to 25 feet
higher than normal water levels. This combination of
rising water and pounding waves can wipe coastal
communities clean and cause significant damage to
roadways, as witnessed during Hurricanes Katrina and
Sandy in most recent years.
4
By: Tiffany Hersey
 Battering surf and
rip current risks are
serious coastal hazards
created by these systems.
Tropical cyclones can
churn up winds and
waves
along
the
coastlines long before
any
of
the
other
associated hazards are
observed. This poses a
threat to surfers and
swimmers
who
get
caught in dangerous rip
currents days before the
storm arrives, when the
sun is still shining. This
is why it is important to
pay attention to beach
warning flags that notify
the public of hazardous
conditions.
The
threats
associated with these
storms
can
occur
hundreds of miles from the storms center and up to a few days
before landfall. So heed warnings and pay attention to your
local media, National Weather Service office, and local
Emergency Managers. They can help prepare and notify
you of impending hazards.
So what might we expect in 2014? Current pre-season
forecasts predict that 2014 might be a below average year;
wherein, many in the scientific community predict anywhere
from 9 to 11 total named storms, 3 to 5 reaching hurricane
strength, and 1 to 2 becoming major hurricanes (refer to the
2014 NOAA Atlantic Hurricane Outlook for 2014). The
reason specialists lean towards low estimates of tropical
cyclone activity in 2014 is due to possible El Niño conditions
developing by late summer or fall, when hurricane season
typically begins to ramp up. An El Niño creates unfavorable
atmospheric conditions across the Atlantic Ocean for tropical
storms to form.
However, it is important to remember that, even in below
average-estimate seasons, impactful storms still occur. What
pre-seasonal forecasts can’t tell us is where storms will
form and the paths they may take. It only takes one
storm, which is why preparedness is crucial!
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Continued from page 4
The Atlantic Hurricane season began on June 1st and runs through November 30th. If you have not already
started preparing, NOW is the time to begin. Easy ways to get started include:
 Creating your disaster supply kit,
 Finding out if you are in an evacuation zone, and
 Planning your evacuation route
The following links will aid you and your family in accomplishing these tasks:



Disaster supply kit checklist: http://www.floridadisaster.org/family/
Know your zone: http://floridadisaster.org/publicmapping/index.htm
Shelter Information by county: http://floridadisaster.org/shelters/
For detailed information on the 2014 Atlantic Hurricane Season, please visit:


http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2014/20140522_hurricaneoutlook_atlantic.html
http://tropical.atmos.colostate.edu/forecasts/2014/apr2014/apr2014.pdf
Pay attention to beach warning flags
to know about possible hazardous
conditions.
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Want to know more about the topics in
this issue? Contact us!
Jamie Leigh Price
jamie.price@em.myflorida.com
Michael Wallick
michael.wallick@em.myflorida.com
Vanessa Castillo
vanessa.castillo@em.myflorida.com
Chad Dumas
chad.dumas@em.myflorida.com
Tiffany Hersey
tiffany.hersey@em.myflorida.com
Angela Bauldree
angela.bauldree@tamarac.org
Laura D’Alisera
lauraad@coj.net
John Shaw
jshaw@coj.net
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The Bureau of Mitigation
Mitigation is an integral part of the Florida Division of
Emergency Management (FDEM). Mitigation actions reduce or
eliminate the loss of life and property by lessening the impact of
disasters. Due to Florida’s weather, geography, and miles of
coastline the state is highly vulnerable to disasters. Disasters can
be very costly to both the citizens and government.
Under the direction of State Hazard Mitigation Officer,
Miles E. Anderson, and Division Director Bryan Koon, the
Bureau of Mitigation administers several federal mitigation
grant programs including the Hazard Mitigation Grant
Program, the Pre-Disaster Mitigation Program, and the Flood
Mitigation Assistance Program. The Bureau also administers a
state funded mitigation program called the Residential
Construction Mitigation Program.
If you would like to know more about mitigation in Florida
please visit: www.floridadisaster.org/mitigation.
Be Sure to Keep Your Plan Alive!
As counties begin the update process for the upcoming
review cycle, many Local Mitigation Strategy Chairs have
asked for tips on how to conduct a better planning process and
combat some of the common obstacles that come up with
Inside
Story
Headline
keeping
planning
groups together and motived.
By: Jamie Leigh Price
planning groups. The participants were split into groups where
they were tasked with a common planning problem and were
given the opportunity to come up with solutions to these
problems. Examples from Orange County, Seminole County,
and Miami-Dade were discussed as solutions with proven
Community Plan Revival “CPR” results. The workshop closed
with tips on how to hold better planning meetings and a list of
resources for further reading.
At this year’s Governor’s Hurricane Conference, Laura
Hite, Laura D’Alisera, and Jamie Leigh Price conducted a
workshop titled How Do I Keep My Plan Alive. The workshop
Overall, the collaboration between participants created
discussed topics such as planning groups, how to keep those
new ideas to be taken back to their respective planning groups.
groups motivated, and how to ensure that the plans created
didn’t sit on a shelf and get dusty between updates.
For more information on the materials and ideas discussed
in this workshop, contact Jamie Leigh Price at
While there was a focus on Local Mitigation Strategy
Plans, the 35 participants brought ideas from a broad range of jamie.price@em.myflorida.com or (850) 413-9925.
“Productivityisneveranaccident.Itisalwaystheresultofacommitmenttoexcellence,intelligentplanning,and
focusedeffort.”
~PaulJ.Meyer