New River Valley hazard-mitigation plan heads to supervisors; county staff outline FEMA requirements and mitigation priorities

Montgomery County staff presented an overview of the New River Valley hazard-mitigation plan update during the Planning Commission’s Aug. 13 work session and said the plan is scheduled to go before the Board of Supervisors with a public hearing and possible adoption on Sept. 8. "The Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 says we have to do it. Without an approved plan, we do not have access to FEMA assistance," staff member Brie said.

The plan is a regional effort led by the New River Valley Regional Commission and updates the county’s prior mitigation work; Montgomery County participated via staff representatives on the steering committee, including Tyler Hall (deputy director of fire and emergency services) and Kim Wright (planning staff). The update began in October 2022 and is the third regional plan; participants included local police and fire, nonprofits, Radford University, Virginia Tech, the Department of Forestry, hospitals, the National Weather Service and other agencies.

Wh…