Thurston County wants to be prepared for natural disasters. Here’s how to help
If you live in the South Sound, you probably already know of the likelihood for natural disasters to strike. Thurston County is at risk of earthquakes, floods, tsunamis, wildfires and volcanic hazards.
The Thurston Regional Planning Council is starting to draft the county’s fourth edition of its Hazards Mitigation Plan, so when disaster strikes, residents across the region will be prepared.
Tumwater City Planner Brad Medrud gave a presentation to Tumwater City Council on June 28 to lay out the city’s role in the county planning process.
“We have a lot of opportunities for natural disasters in our community,” Medrud said. “The purpose of mitigation is to identify and implement actions that eliminate long-term risks to life and property before they occur.”
He said some of the planning simply includes determining where buildings can and can’t be built in the future in regards to floodplains. Building codes have to be up to date to ensure buildings can withstand earthquakes or other natural disasters. Tumwater, as well as other cities in the county, have specific sections in the plan that lay out mitigation.
For example, if data were to show a vital area or building would suffer from major flooding in a disaster event, mitigation could include elevating or removing those structures so they take on less. And this type of planning can regulate future development in those areas.
More than 20 local jurisdictions, including cities, school districts, LOTT and other special districts are involved in updating the mitigation plan. They’re required by law to update their plan every five years to maintain eligibility for federal grant programs to fund mitigation, Medrud said.
The previous plan, published in 2017, included a community profile of Thurston County, different hazards risk assessments, strategies on how to implement mitigation efforts and more. Medrud said the county doesn’t expect much to change in regards to strategies and implementation.
City spokesperson Ann Cook said if anything, they may find that will be additional hazards or the risk level of others may change.
The 2017 plan says the region’s planning partners have made steady progress toward fulfilling mitigation goals so far. But the original plan had a goal fulfillment date of 2025, which is now right around the corner.
“Although the original plan sets a goal fulfillment date of 2025, most of the plan objectives will require continuous efforts throughout the region,” it reads.
A community survey is available for residents of Thurston County and any jurisdictions within it. It asks people what hazards they’re concerned about and how they want their city and county to take action to reduce losses. It can be found on the TRPC’s website until July 31.
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