Addison County, Vermont to Become a Disaster Resistant Community 

Release Date: September 14, 2000
Release Number: R1-00-44

Boston, MA -- Addison County, Vermont has joined Project Impact: Building a Disaster Resistant Community, the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) national initiative dedicated to changing the way America deals with disasters.

At least one community from each state has now taken action to reduce the effects of natural disasters. By joining the effort of Project Impact, Addison County and its Regional Planning Commission commit themselves to taking actions in advance of a disaster to reduce damage. Addison county is located in west-central Vermont and encompasses 21 towns in the region .

" I am pleased to welcome the Addison County, Vermont into the network of Project Impact communities," said FEMA Director James Lee Witt. "This initiative has demonstrated that prevention works, and Project Impact will continue to help Addison businesses and residents shift their focus from simply responding to disasters to taking actions in advance to stop the devastating property damage and loss of life."

Project Impact, an initiative launched by FEMA in 1997, works with state and local governments to build more disaster resistant communities. The partnership will unite FEMA, Addison County, the Vermont Office of Emergency Management, local government, citizens and business leaders in a combined effort to envision and implement strategies designed to lessen future disaster loss.

"Our objective in Vermont is to share in the success of each community and spread the word of the tremendous impact that this initiative has upon disaster-resistance ,"said Ed vonTurkovich, Director of the Vermont Office of Emergency Management.

Project Impact was launched by FEMA in October,1997 to urge citizens, government officials and the business community to take actions to make their communities more disaster- resistant currently there are over 200 Project Impact communities and 2,500 business partners across America.

"The Addison County Regional Planning Commission is the fourth planning commission in Vermont to participate in Project Impact. I know that the citizens of the Addison County will share this knowledge and their future successes with other communities in the State of Vermont," said Setti D. Warren, Regional Director at FEMA Region I in Boston.

Last Modified: Wednesday, 12-Nov-2003 14:15:13