Mitigation Best Practices

PLYMOUTH, NH - The Town of Plymouth faced with repeated flooding in the downtown

area. This was caused by an undersized stormwater collection system. Existing culverts, catch basins and stormwater drains were inadequate to handle even low to moderate runoff. High velocity water moves down the streets causing stormwater backup through the drains and spouts as high as 2 feet. As much as 2 feet of water accumulates during a heavy rainfall, flooding businesses and some homes, and flooding streets and walkways, making the business district inaccessible to traffic.

MANDEVILLE, LA - In the City of Mandeville, approximately 80 percent of the incorporated area is within a Special Flood Hazard Area, Zone A and Zone V. In May 1995, the southeastern portion of Louisiana experienced a flood so significant that the National Flood Insurance Program estimated it to be the most expensive flood disaster for Louisiana, costing approximately $534 million in claims paid.

MAPLETON, OR - Located in the unincorporated coastal region of Lane County along the Siuslaw River, Mapleron has experienced flooding most recently in December 1997. This logging town has been subject to recurring floods throughout its history. The Siuslaw River valley is narrow, with steep mountains that rise up directly from the floodplain. The coastal range mountains are famous for their high rainfall and unstable soils, both factors that contribute to recurring flood events.

MARYLAND - Maryland has had its share of major flood events since the first recorded major flood event in May of 1860. Since 1933, the state has sought to ensure public safety from flooding through the regulation of development projects proposed for the floodplain. As part of its long history of flood mitigation, Maryland has also used its Comprehensive Flood Management Grant Program (CFMGP) to mitigate flood damage through projects such as acquisitions, the installation of flood warning systems, the construction of flood control projects, as well as many other projects over the years.

MARYLAND – The Hazus Multi-Hazard (Hazus-MH) flood model is being used by the State of Maryland as part of a comprehensive vulnerability assessment of the state’s built environment to riverine and coastal flooding. The Eastern Shore Regional GIS Cooperative (ESRGC) at Salisbury University is taking the lead in the study, which measures four determinants of potential flood loss:

MASON COUNTY, WA - The Skokomish River valley experiences widespread flooding several times each year as heavy rains and mountain snow runoff swell the river outside of its banks.

WYOMING COUNTY, WV - The riverfront properties nestled along Laurel Creek in the Laurel Estates and Lillyton area of Matheny, West Virginia were home to 16 families that had suffered repeated flood damage. Wyoming County Emergency Services Director Dean Meadows describes this area as “the place in Wyoming County that has the most severe localized flooding and caused continual damage to property and homes.”

CHARLESTON, SC – The City of Charleston is known for its genteel beauty, conveying images of horsedrawn carriages strolling along cobblestone streets, ancient oak trees clothed in evergreen Spanish moss, and corridors of antebellum homes with open-air porches all shielded by a sea wall, appropriately called The Battery.

MICHIGAN - The State has been taking an active role in hazard mitigation for several years, and has increased its coordination by developing an interagency group to review and prioritize projects for the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) funding available after a Presidential disaster declaration.

LAWRENCE COUNTY, OH - As coordinator of seven different mitigation projects after extensive flooding along the Ohio River in 1997, Doug Cade of Lawrence County Community Action, was primarily involved in acquiring and demolishing severely damaged properties. But in his meetings with residents and review of data from the Miller South flood area, Cade found that elevation of some flood-damaged properties was not only a viable alternative, but also the best one.