BUILDING DISASTER RESISTANT COMMUNITIES

By Director James Lee Witt

Today we seek not just progress, but a whole new way of thinking about disaster.

We seek not just to turn the page of history forward, but to open a new chapter. As we pursue this vision together, our guides are the memories of those who perished in disasters, the anguish of those who survived and, above all, the fighting spirit of those who were determined to rebuild.

Now, the same fighting spirit which has spurred disaster victims to forge ahead, has rallied diverse factions into a new and determined alliance, one which has been designed to defy disaster through preparedness and damage prevention strategies. Under the auspices of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Project Impact: Building a Disaster Resistant Community has been formed, an initiative that challenges the nation to undertake actions to reduce vulnerability to disasters and transform communities into disaster resistant ones.

COMMUNITY BASED DISASTER RESISTANCE
Since its inception in October 1997, the effort has expanded from seven pilot communities to include nearly 200, has enlisted the partnership of all states and territories, has signed up over 2,500 business partners including Visa, State Farm Insurance, and Fannie Mae. The effort has provided technical assistance and a small amount of seed money to Project Impact communities to give them the leverage necessary to launch their disaster resistance efforts. Our mission to prevent human devastation by natural forces is flourishing throughout the country, and its fruits are already being seen.

Preventative measures are proven to work. Such is the case of the Southern California Anheuser Busch brewery. In the early 1980s, the company invested $15 million to protect its facilities from a quake. The retrofitting was put to a severe test in 1994 when a quake whose epicenter was only 12 miles from the brewery rumbled through the area. Anheuser Busch estimates it saved $300 million in damages and lost production: operations never stopped, and repair costs were minimal.

Under the Project Impact initiative, now in its third year, participating communities use public-private partnerships to implement measures designed to create safer, less disaster-vulnerable places to live and work. These partnerships are based on three primary beliefs: mitigation is a local issue, private sector participation is essential, and mitigation is a long-term effort that requires long-term investment. Communities seeking to become disaster resistant are encouraged to form partnerships among business, government and private citizens, identify and prioritize the community’s hazard risks, identify resources and mitigation actions, and disseminate planning details by use of every possible media means.

REDUCING RISK THROUGH MITIGATION
Mitigation is the cornerstone of emergency management. It's the ongoing effort to lessen the impact disasters have on people and property. Mitigation involves keeping homes away from floodplains, engineering bridges to withstand earthquakes, creating and enforcing effective building codes to protect property from hurricanes – and more.

Mitigation is defined as "sustained action that reduces or eliminates long-term risk to people and property from natural hazards and their effects." It describes the ongoing effort at the Federal, State, local, and individual levels to lessen the impact of disasters upon our families, homes, communities and economy.

In practice, mitigation can take many forms. It can involve actions such as:

• Promoting sound land use planning based on known hazards.
• Buying flood insurance to protect your belongings.
• Relocating or elevating structures out of the floodplains.
• Securing shelves and water heaters to nearby walls.
• Having hurricane straps installed to more securely attach a structure's roof to its walls and foundation.
• Developing, adopting, and enforcing effective building codes and standards.
• Engineering roads and bridges to withstand earthquakes.
• Using fire-retardant materials in new construction.
• Developing and implementing a plan in your business or community to reduce your susceptibility to hazards.

MITIGATION INFORMATION FOR BUSINESSES
Would you know what to do if an earthquake, flood, or hurricane hit tomorrow, and could your business survive? The resulting damage often goes beyond that of structure and contents. It means rebuilding costs, pressure on credit lines, loss of savings, out-of-work employees, all of which could be deadly to the future of your business. Your business operation can be interrupted by direct damages to your business location and equipment, or by failure of critical local infrastructures like electrical power, water supply and road systems.

Over 630 businesses were affected in the Santa Cruz area by the 1989 Loma Prieta, California earthquake. Over 15% of these businesses never re-opened. Over 250 business in Chesterfield, Missouri where affected by the Midwest Floods of 1993. Only 65 of the businesses had re-opened a year after the flood and the Chamber of Commerce estimates that only 65 percent of the businesses will ever reopen.

Mitigation is a proven, cost-effective option, for businesses to reduce their exposure to damages. For example, in a flood prone area, businesses can elevate machinery and utility systems to reduce the likelihood of water damage during a flood. In an earthquake prone area, mitigation can be as simple as securing desktop equipment, like personal computers or cash registers, with heavy duty "velcro" or straps to prevent them from falling to the floor. In a hurricane prone area, the installation of storm shutters over all exposed windows is an effective mitigation measure. Debris can break windows, allowing high winds inside your business, which can increase the level of damages.

Businesses can take these first steps to implement mitigation measures:

1. Identify the potential risks, which could affect your business.
2. Purchase applicable insurance. Standard insurance does not include earthquake or flood insurance. Contact your businesses insurance agent to ensure your business is covered for all risks.
3. Contact your State or local emergency management office or building official, or a FEMA Regional office for more information on protecting your business through mitigation.
4. Encourage local community mitigation efforts that reduce the risk to critical local infrastructures like electricity, water, and roads that are necessary for the continued operation of your business.

ONLY THE BEGINNING
The past year has seen significant progress toward a more disaster resistant country, but this is only the beginning. This, the start of the 21st century, is but the daybreak of our efforts. We will not rest until the sun shines on an America secure in the knowledge that every precaution has been taken to defend ourselves from the most uncontrollable of incidents.

About the Author
James Lee Witt is the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Under his leadership, Project Impact was launched in 1997.