Pre-Disaster Mitigation Planning

(for UNC Campuses)

 

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. Universities are not immune from such events. The time, money, and efforts to recover from these disasters exhaust resources, diverting attention from important programs and the education of our students, as well as faculty and staff disruptions. The University of North Carolina and its constituent institutions recognize the impact of disasters on our communities and conclude that proactive efforts need to be taken to reduce the impact of natural and human-caused hazards.

The University system has received funding from FEMA to develop a Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) Planning Process for the UNC System as a whole, and on each of the campuses. This effort is understood to be the first FEMA-funded PDM planning project that targets a complete system of universities.  This phase of the project is focused on the eight western campuses.  Accordingly, a team led by faculty and staff from UNC Charlotte with support from UNC Chapel Hill, has worked with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Regional Office in Atlanta, the State Division of Emergency Management (NCEM), and UNC General Administration to initiate this Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) Planning Process.  Our team also includes an engineering consultant firm, Zapata Engineering of North Carolina, Inc.

The project was initiated in October 2007.  As designed, this process is being coordinated on a campus-by-campus basis with any current PDM efforts on each campus that may be underway. For example, many campuses have implemented emergency communication systems; most are engaged in business continuity planning; perhaps all have participated in pandemic planning.  

Beginning early in the Spring Semester, 2008, the following campuses were asked to participate in this project:  NC A&T State University, UNC Greensboro, Winston-Salem State University, NC School of the Arts, Appalachian State University, UNC Charlotte, UNC Asheville, and Western Carolina University. A proposal to include the campuses in the eastern part of the state was submitted in early December 2008.  This planning process will include the addition of support from NC State University and East Carolina State University.  UNC Chapel Hill and UNC Wilmington have PDM processes already underway. The remainder of the campuses who have not completed their PDM planning process will be asked to become involved in this system-wide effort upon approval for additional funding from FEMA.  

 

Pre-Disaster Mitigation Planning for UNC Campuses,  Page 2

From the outset of the project, UNC Charlotte has served as the “test case” of the mitigation planning process that is being developed on a campus by campus basis over a three year period.  Key personnel involved in the Charlotte initiative include project manager and PI, Dr. Edd Hauser; Sherry Elmes, planning coordinator;  Dr. Dave Weggel, structural engineer;  Morgan Roseborough, Business Continuity Director and Interim Assoc. Vice Chancellor for Risk Assessment, Safety and Security;  Larry Howell, Director of Facilities Management;  and Marlene Hall, Chief of Police and Campus Security Director.

To date, at least two meetings and as many as four meetings or work sessions have been held on each of the seven campuses currently engaged.  At UNC Charlotte, the core group developing a set of protocols for PDM planning system-wide meets on a monthly basis. Presentations describing the project have been made to the System-wide Facilities Management Coordinating Committee, which meets bi-annually, and at the Business Continuity Roundtable that met in Wilmington in the fall of 2008.

This project will not only guide campuses towards greater disaster resistance, but already is projected to be part of on-going efforts to create more sustainable university communities.  The University’s PDM planning process will be prepared to meet FEMA requirements [Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 and its implementing regulations]. We have completed a template that is named “UFIS” for the first phase of the PDM planning process that will apply to the System as a whole.  Each campus will have their own specific plan that recognizes priority facilities and systems that exist on their campus. UFIS stands for University Facilities Importance Spreadsheet, and is based on guidance from FEMA documents and from ASCE publication # 5-07.  ASCE 5-07 was designed specifically for human-induced disasters.  The project lead structural engineer, Dr. Weggel, has received approval for incorporating the UNC process, when developed, into a process for review and approval for a PDM evaluation process that applies to damages from natural disasters as well. The structural team will be making on-site assessments of up to ten facilities on each campus.

Dr. Weggel’s team will inspect the selected facilities and systems on the campus of UNC Charlotte during the month of January 2009.  The remaining seven western campuses will be scheduled during the spring and summer of 2009.  Each campus will identify their “Top 10” facilities and systems for inspection by the team.