His job is to make you safe

Preparing the community for disaster is year-round work.

By BBEHRENDTN
Published November 4, 2007

BROOKSVILLE - Just because hurricane season is winding down, it doesn't mean Tom Leto gets a break.

As Hernando County's emergency management director, Leto is also charged with finding new ways to make the community safer and more prepared for any kind of disaster, year-round.

Recently, the county's Local Mitigation Strategy Committee, of which Leto is a key member, released its annual report to explain the current projects under way to make flood-prone parts of Hernando County safer.

Funded largely through federal grants, Leto's staff is working with other county, city and school officials to make public buildings safer in case of a storm, create more storm shelter spaces, solve neighborhood flooding problems and acquire homes that have had multiple flood insurance claims.

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The very act of releasing the report and generating public awareness of the hazard mitigation projects and opportunities is actually a primary way Leto's staff helps bring down the cost of flood insurance for county residents.

He credits the informational brochure delivered to property owners with their preliminary tax notices each summer with giving the county a drop in its flood insurance rating, from an 8 to a 7.

The county is taking aim at lowering that ranking still further, and Leto said the county is very close to a 6. He believes that once the flood remapping project under way with the Southwest Florida Water Management District is complete, Hernando County will again get a deeper discount on policy premiums.

For communities rated a 6, the discount increases to 20 percent. The current discount is 15 percent.

Leto doesn't have to go far to demonstrate how his aggressive approach to seeking federal grant money has benefited Hernando County.

"This is the perfect example," he said, gesturing to his surroundings in a conference room at the Emergency Operations Center during an interview last week.

The $6-million facility benefited from nearly $1-million in federal funds to harden it against hurricane-force winds.

Leto, who came to Hernando County from Pinellas County in 2003, has made a focused hazard mitigation program a top priority. The important job of seeking out grant funding to make that happen falls to Cecilia Patella, the Emergency Management Department's coordinator for mitigation and recovery.

The rules to mitigate potential hazards have been evolving over recent years, but the focus, Leto said, "is to identify projects in our communities to help us weather the storm."

County buys property

Just what can be done with grant money is illustrated by a sad case in 2004. That year, Hernando County got the tail end of two hurricanes, and a brand new house built on Canopy Oaks Road north of Brooksville was flooded several feet deep in what appeared to be a high and dry area.

The county now owns that property, thanks to a grant of about $300,000 from FEMA. Never again will a house flood on that property.

Numerous other residential properties are on the county's list for acquisition or elevation to eliminate future threats of flood insurance claims.

Those residential properties come from a list regularly received by Patella from the flood insurance program. In Hernando County, there are 136 properties on the "repetitive loss list" because they have had multiple flood insurance claims.

A letter goes out to each of those homeowners from Emergency Management to inform them that there could be grant assistance available to help them. The letter also invites the homeowners to attend a meeting of the Local Mitigation Strategy Committee to learn more.

Those who follow through land on the county's list of potential projects.

To expand that notification, Leto said he plans from now on to send letters not just to people on the "repetitive loss list," but also to others in their neighborhood. While some might not file claims after a flood or may not have flood insurance, they could still be eligible for grant money if they can prove previous loss. "We really push it because we've seen what can happen," Leto said.

This year, the county has already received word that federal money is available to purchase an often-flooded home in Weeki Wachee. Leto said the county is in final discussions with the owner to accept the grant and conclude the project.

Pet shelter on the way

Many of the mitigation projects, such as funding for the Emergency Operations Center next to the Sheriff's Office in Brooksville, benefit a large segment of the community.

One project that received money this year is a wind retrofit of the county's Public Works Department building in Brooksville. The county received a grant for $119,000 to add shutters and other improvements to help it withstand a storm. That is particularly important because, during a crisis, the building would be used as the county's disaster recovery center.

Improvements to the Brooksville City Hall and the Brooksville Police Department have also been funded through federal dollars, and those projects are expected to begin soon. Once City Hall is completed, the building can better serve as Brooksville's emergency operations center, Leto said.

One project on the list this year is designed to help the far eastern side of Hernando County: the addition of a stormwater pump in the flood-prone Ridge Manor area. That project is expected to protect as many as 100 homes in Sherman Hills, and should be completed next year.

Two other projects to shrink the county's deficit of space in storm shelters have been stalled because of funding issues.

Leto said the county has been hoping to create a pet-friendly shelter at Parrott Middle School. While the county has gotten funding to buy equipment for the pet part of the project, there have been unforeseen delays in getting federal money to retrofit the school to better protect evacuees. That retrofit would add 304 new shelter spaces.

Still, Leto said he is confident he will find a way to create a shelter for people and their animals by the time the 2008 hurricane season arrives.

A federal grant has also been used to purchase a 2.5-megawatt generator for Challenger K-8 School of Science and Mathematics, but funding ran out before it could be installed. Leto said he will work with county and school officials to figure out whether they can find a way to install the generator. "Maybe we can partner," he said.

Once the generator is in place, the school can accept special needs evacuees.

Another project the county has on its list is to retrofit the planned Enrichment Center at Oak Hill Hospital so that it too will be available for special needs evacuees.

In the past, the federal funding has allowed retrofits of four county fire departments and generators for 14 sewer lift stations that will allow the systems to continue to work after a power outage.

Leto doesn't apologize for his aggressive approach to spending the federal grant money when he can get it.

"We'd better take that opportunity," he said. "If it's going to improve the safety and better the situation, we've got to do it. It's good for the community."

Barbara Behrendt can be reached at behrendt@sptimes.com or 352 848-1434.

Fast facts

National Flood Insurance Program

In 1968, Congress created the National Flood Insurance Program to provide affordable flood insurance to people living in high-risk flood areas. The program is administered by a branch of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. It makes flood insurance available in communities that adopt and enforce floodplain management ordinances and regulations to reduce future flood damage.

Community rating system

Developed by the Federal Insurance Administration, the rating system's objective is to reduce flood damage by providing financial incentives to communities that implement higher floodplain standards than the minimum National Flood Insurance Program requirements.

The system rewards the extra efforts of these communities by providing discounts on flood insurance premiums based on the level of compliance with published standards.

Counties that perform only the minimum requirements rate a 10 ranking and receive no insurance premium discounts. Hernando County is a 7, and residents receive a 15 percent discount on their flood insurance premiums. Countywide, that discount amounts to $240,000 in savings to residents annually.

As of February this year, there were 5,039 flood insurance policies in Hernando County, up 19 percent over 2006.

Source: Hernando County Emergency Management

[Last modified November 3, 2007, 20:05:58]