Emergency Management Update Briefing — Washington Emergency Management Division (January 12, 2024)

Summary

A slide presentation titled Emergency Management Update, a briefing to the House Innovation, Community & Economic Development, and Veterans Committee dated January 12, 2024, by the Director of the Emergency Management Division of the Washington Military Department. It reports statistics on the Gray and Oregon Road Fires of Aug 18 – Sep 1, 2023, including 29,000 acres burned and 369 primary homes lost, and lists state assistance such as $1.25 Million from the Governors Emergency Assistance Fund. It describes a planned state Individual Assistance program with a max award per household of $42,500 and a $300,000 Extreme Weather Grant. It also outlines a proposed state Public Infrastructure Assistance Program under House Bill 2020, wildfire mitigation challenges and recommendations, and capacity-building next steps.

Summary drafted by a model from the document's text below and checked by script against that text before publication. It is a navigation aid, not a reading of what the document proves. Where AI is used

Full text

   Endeavoring to make these
fires known for the remarkable
     recovery more than the
       devastating losses
GRAY ROAD FIRE STATISTICS
    START DATE: 8/18/2023
    638 PERSONNEL ASSIGNED
    SIZE: 10,085 ACRES
    240 HOMES
    326 TOTAL STRUCTURES LOST
    1 FATALITY
            PROTECTING HEALTH, SAFETY, AND WELFARE


         $8M                            $29M                               $33M

        Cleanup               Infrastructure Improvements            Temporary Housing

    Hazard Assessment          Private Wells to Municipal Water    Challenging Market Conditions
       Tree Removal            Fire Flow and 70 Hydrants Added    Accommodate Displaced Families
      Debris Removal             Septic Systems to Sewer Lines               55 Cabins
Disposal of Hazardous Waste      Connected Network of Roads        22 RV Sites with Full Hookups
IMPORTANT
DISASTER RECOVERY NEEDS


        Providing for Public Health
        and Safety



        Improving Infrastructure
        Resiliency



        Reducing Risk and
        Vulnerability
Emergency Management Update
Briefing to the House Innovation, Community & Economic
          Development, and Veterans Committee

                   January 12, 2024

                     Robert Ezelle
       Director, Emergency Management Division
            Washington Military Department
    Gray and Oregon Road Fires, Aug 18 – Sep 1, 2023
• Record or near record temperatures
• Record fuels dryness
• Near record low humidity (single digits)
• 25 – 30 mph winds
• 2 fatalities
• 29,000 acres burned
• 369 primary homes lost, the most in any Washington wildfire
2023 Gray and Oregon Road Fires – State and Federal Assistance
• Federal Assistance:
   – 3 Oct Major Disaster declaration request for Individual Assistance (IA) submitted
     to FEMA
• State Assistance:
   – $1.25 Million from the Governors Emergency Assistance Fund (GEAF) for
     asbestos testing, transitional housing assistance, disaster case management
     services, and other needs assistance.
   – $2.5 Million from the Department of Commerce's Emergency Fund and an
     additional $1.25 Million of the GEAF for uninsured private property debris
     removal.
             Individual Assistance for Spokane Fires
Support for Spokane Wildfire Recovery:
Primary Homes Damaged by Fires (Validated): 369 Destroyed, 2 Major, 15 Minor, 2 Affected

Emergency funds provided to survivors through grant agreements with Spokane County:
• Private Property Debris Removal: Assisting 25 uninsured homeowners with Asbestos testing
  and debris removal
    • 48 homeowners are underinsured and in need of debris removal assistance (will assist if
      funds available)
• Disaster Case Management Services (DCM): DCM being provided by Salvation Army under
  contract with Spokane County.
• Transitional Housing Assistance: Funds providing supplies for Local Organizations building
  transitional housing units for survivors.
• Other Needs Assistance: RV winterization materials, Utility reconnection on properties, and
  more.
               State Individual Assistance Program
• Significant challenges receiving federal Individual Assistance (IA) declarations
• Legislature funded disaster assistance following Nov 21 floods, and an IA study
• EMD is creating rules to guide a state IA program (WAC), ECD Feb – Mar 2024
• Will submit a decision package for the 25-27 biennium requesting permanent program funding for
  Individual Assistance for the following:
  – Access to the Disaster Response Account to facilitate this support to individuals, max authorization of $13 million per
    biennium available for this program.
• Under this new program the state would reimburse counties and tribes for individual assistance for the
  following programs (Max award per household = $42,500, matching FEMA's max for similar assistance)
  – Housing assistance: Extended sheltering assistance, Rental assistance, Home repair and home replacement
  – Disaster-Caused Unmet Needs
  – Recovery Support- Disaster Case Management and other admin support
                            Extreme Weather Grant
$300,000 was provided last year for EMD to administer grants to local governments and federally
recognized tribes for costs to respond to community needs during periods of extremely hot or cold
weather or in situations of severe poor air quality from wildfire smoke.

Costs eligible for reimbursement under this grant:
    ▪ Establishing and operating warming and cooling centers:
       ▪ Including rental of equipment, purchase of supplies and water, staffing, and other associated costs
    ▪ Transporting individuals and their pets to warming and cooling centers
    ▪ Purchasing fans or other supplies needed for cooling of congregate living settings
    ▪ Providing emergency sheltering such as rental of a meeting space and/or convention center;
    ▪ Minor retrofitting or establishing facilities within warming and cooling centers that are pet friendly in order
      to permit individuals to evacuate with their pets;
    ▪ Other activities necessary for life safety during a period of extremely hot or cold weather or in situations of
      severe poor air quality from wildfire smoke, as determined by the department.

To date only one jurisdiction (King County) has requested reimbursement for qualifying shelter expenses and has
yet to complete the process.
            State Public Infrastructure Assistance Program
• Multiple disasters not rising to the level of a federal public assistance (PA) declaration highlight the
  need for state assistance
   – For every disaster receiving a federal PA declaration at least 10 others do not
• State capability to assist with local and tribal infrastructure repairs is limited to non-existent
• Examples of unmet local PA needs
   – Aberdeen floods
   – 2023 fires – Debris removal
   – Emergency protective measures
• House Bill 2020 establishing PA program in RCW 38.52 submitted as agency request legislation
    – Requesting update of RCW 38.52 to place a state PA program into statute.
    – $575,000 for contract support to build out a state level PA program (Similar to process conducted for State
      Individual Assistance build out)
    – $5 million be added to the Governor's Emergency Assistance Fund specifically for PA
                  Wildfire Mitigation Challenges
• Challenge: federal grants for wildfire mitigation projects are slow to award, often delaying the
  needed risk-reduction actions for years.
   • Recommendation: Provide dedicated state funds for prioritized wildfire risk-reduction
      projects that counties and tribes can quickly access when needed.
• Challenge: In the post-fire landscape, regulatory constraints often hinder reseeding and other
  time-sensitive efforts to stabilize hillsides, protect waterways, and reduce further damages.
   • Recommendation: Explore options and opportunities under SEPA and other state-level
      regulations to expedite urgent, incident stabilization projects in and around burn areas.
• Challenge: Using prescribed fire is an effective method of reducing wildfire risk, yet the public
  has limited awareness of its benefits and remain skeptical– even resistant– to its use.
   • Recommendation: Equip local entities, like conservation districts and fire districts, to
      conduct public information campaigns about prescribed fire and controlled burns.
                   Capacity-Building Next Steps
• Request funding to fully fund the state individual assistance program
• Request funding for a study to determine best practices and recommendations for the
  state public infrastructure assistance program
• Request funding to create an Incident Management Assistance Team (IMAT) in EMD to be
  able to provide response and recovery assistance to tribes and local jurisdictions
  experiencing incidents and disasters
• Scope and request funding for a local emergency management assistance grant to increase
  tribal and county EM capacity


File and source

File

2024-01-12_a31582_d264327_medical-lake-and-emd-wildfire-preparedness.pdf

Size

1,258,210 bytes

SHA-256

aa255b441caf43005676f5f5c09d2684a73734f285d2133225eb55023d08f2cd

Our copy

2024-01-12_a31582_d264327_medical-lake-and-emd-wildfire-preparedness.pdf

Original

app.leg.wa.gov