JANUARY 24, 2025|
Photo – The Mullen Fire as seen from the highway – Bigfoot99 file photo
The Carbon County Emergency Manager presented a new Region Three Hazard Mitigation Plan to Carbon County Commissioners this week.
During the board’s meeting on January 21st, Emergency Manager Lenny Layman presented the newly completed plan. Layman explained that the model is used by Carbon and Albany Counties to identify, prevent, and react to large scale emergencies, such as fires, floods, and winter storms.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency requires a hazard mitigation plan to be updated every five years. The Wyoming Office of Homeland Security hired the Boulder, Colorado-based consulting firm Synergy Disaster Recovery to spearhead the new hazard plan development process.
Speaking to the board, Emergency Manager Layman stated that, with the help of Commissioners Travis Moore, Sue Jones, and 56 other county entities, he has gotten nearly every municipality and agency in Carbon County to comply with the new hazard mitigation plan.
Carbon County School District Number One has chosen not to take part in the updated hazard mitigation plan.
Layman explained that emergency planning is difficult in Carbon County due to its large size and number of municipalities, the most in the state. In order to tailor the 2025 Region Three Hazard Mitigation Plan to our specific needs, Layman said he separated Carbon from Albany County.
Layman introduced Wyoming Office of Homeland Security Grants and Finance Section Chief Ashley Paulsrud, who explained that she oversees hazard mitigation and recovery efforts around the state. Paulsrud said out of the eight plans in Wyoming, region three, which encompasses Carbon and Albany Counties, is the largest.
The completed Region Three Hazard Mitigation Plan must be approved by FEMA before the previous plan expires this May. Paulsrud said without a FEMA approved plan, funding for any hazard mitigation efforts in Carbon and Albany Counties will end.
In Carbon County, ongoing hazard mitigation efforts are focused on Boozer Creek in Saratoga. The Saratoga-Encampment-Rawlins Conservation District is actively rebuilding the banks of this small, man-made tributary to the North Platte River to prevent flooding.
Additionally, Paulsrud mentioned that a completed hazard mitigation plan enables participating municipalities to seek funding for emergency prevention on their own, without needing to go through the county.
Commissioner John Johnson asked if the plan can be updated more frequently. While FEMA requires the document to be revised within five years, Paulsrud said the plan can be updated at any time.
Layman explained that he has designed the plan to require yearly updates. Layman said he’ll use the participating member’s Council of Governments, or COG, representatives to recommend the necessary changes.
The board thanked Layman for working on the Region Three Hazard Mitigation Plan, with Commission Chairman Travis Moore expressing his appreciation that the plan will be regularly updated.
