Hawaiʻi County is updating its hazard mitigation plan for the first time since 2020, and the county is taking public feedback on the plan now.
The county needs a new mitigation plan in place before the current one expires in September in order to remain eligible for certain pipelines of federal disaster funding.
Hawaiʻi Island residents have had opportunities to share their thoughts on the plan in public meetings over the course of several months, but this is the first chance for community members to review a draft of the plan in its entirety.
It discusses major hazards likely familiar to many Hawaiʻi Island residents, like wildfires and eruptions.
There are also a few hazards that might not immediately spring to mind, such as dam failures — a risk to some people in South Kohala — and cyber attacks, which are a growing concern across the state.
Wildfires and interruptions to the food supply are tied as Hawaiʻi Island's top two hazards, according to risk calculations in the plan.
Hawaiʻi Island, like much of the state, is largely dependent on food imports. The plan states that if a disaster damaged the county's ports, it would experience a food shortage within a week.
People can find the draft of the plan, alongside a feedback survey, here. The deadline to submit feedback is March 26.
