Southeastern Connecticut suffered severe flooding in March 2010, resulting in a Federal disaster declaration. The next year, Tropical Storm Irene and October snowstorm Alfred caused damage to infrastructure and resulted in additional disaster declarations. Flooding, heavy snow, wind, and downed power lines cause damage to property, close our schools and businesses, and jeopardize the health and safety of the citizens of southeastern Connecticut.
To continue minimizing our vulnerabilities to natural hazards, the Southeastern Connecticut Council of Governments (SCCOG) has updated the region’s hazard mitigation plan. The plan discusses the occurrence and consequences of floods, winter storms, tornadoes, hurricanes and tropical storms, wildfires, earthquakes, and dam failure. The plan identifies activities that can be undertaken to minimize property damage, risk of life, and the costs that are shared by all of us when disasters occur. These activities include methods of property protection such as elevating homes, structural projects such as culvert replacements, continued public outreach and education, continued provision of emergency services, damage prevention through planning and regulations, and natural resource protection.
In order to present the updated hazard mitigation plan, the Southeastern Connecticut Council of Governments will host a forum on Thursday, August 23, from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., at its office located at 5 Connecticut Avenue in Norwich. Residents and business owners are invited to attend the forum to hear about the plan, offer any suggestions for the plan, and learn about the next steps for their communities.
For further information, please contact James S. Butler, Executive Director, Southeastern Connecticut Council of Governments, at (860) 889-2324 or jbutler@seccog.org.
