Public invited to meeting on hazard mitigation plan

East Stroudsburg , PA - (November 14, 2007) - Area residents and members of the campus community are invited to attend a meeting on the Disaster Resistant University Grant Project Thursday, November 29, at 2:00 pm in the Lower Dansbury Commons Building.

The meeting, designed to gain information that will help East Stroudsburg University plan for long-term risks, is being held to prioritize the draft hazard mitigation actions determined at sessions earlier this year. The prioritized listing will serve as the basis for developing more detailed and specific actions in the hazard mitigation plan.

Across the United States, natural and human-caused disasters have led to increasing levels of deaths, injuries, property damage, and interruption of business and government services. East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania recognized the impact of potential disasters on their community and concluded that proactive efforts needed to be taken to reduce the impact of natural and human-caused hazards.

Accordingly, East Stroudsburg University's Disaster-Resistant University Hazard Mitigation Planning Committee (DRU/HMPC) is preparing a Hazard Mitigation Plan. This project will not only guide the University towards greater disaster resistance, but is part of on-going efforts to create a more sustainable University community.

The University's Hazard Mitigation Plan will be prepared to meet Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) requirements, in order for the University to be eligible for funding and technical assistance from state and federal hazard mitigation programs. In order to qualify for federal aid for technical assistance and post-disaster funding, the University must comply with the Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 (DMA) and its implementing regulations.

Hazard mitigation is a phrase that describes actions taken to prevent or reduce the long-term risks to life and property from hazards. Pre-disaster mitigation actions are taken in advance of a hazard event and are essential to breaking the typical disaster cycle of damage, reconstruction, and repeated damage. With careful selection, mitigation actions can be long-term, cost-effective means of reducing the risk of loss. The hazard mitigation planning process consists of:

• Public involvement through a series of meetings;
• Identification of hazards that could affect the University;
• Assessment of the University's vulnerability to these hazards in terms of the number of structures and people affected;
• Identification of mitigation actions that can reduce the risk from these hazards; and
• Development of an implementation strategy identifying roles and responsibilities.