ROUTT COUNTY LONG-TERM WILDFIRE RECOVERY PLAYBOOK

Routt County is very lucky to continue to have the opportunity to proactively pursue pre-wildfire recovery planning before a catastrophic wildfire occurs. The playbook provided a gap analysis of local and regional resources crucial to long-term wildfire recovery. The resulting call-to-action was to the community, to establish a long-term recovery group which would lead the activation of the recovery recommendations identified in the playbook. The community is answering the call!

The Northwest Colorado COAD (Community Organizations Active in Disaster) has been formed, with the mission to bring together nonprofit, governmental, voluntary and faith-based organizations to address the needs of the people in Northwest Colorado, effectively and equitably, in times of disaster so that the potential impacts are minimized. While the COAD coordinates through all the phases of the disaster management cycle, there is a long-term recovery committee that will focus on recovery planning and implementation in the areas of housing, economy, natural and cultural resources, and community and individual assistance.

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“Halie did an exceptional job drafting the Routt County Long-Term Wildfire Recovery Playbook, which provides a solid framework for identifying resources, stakeholders, and actions in support of long-term recovery. Additionally, the plan incorporates several recovery best practices including the establishment of a long-term recovery group pre-disaster, integration with other community and state plans, equitable recovery considerations, and rebuilding more resilient. I am excited to see how this playbook will guide recovery planning for Routt County, and serve  as an example for other Colorado communities.”
Matthew Jacobs, Recovery Program Manager, Colorado Resiliency Office - Department of Local Affairs
“I wish someone had handed me a document like the Routt County Long-Term Wildfire Recovery Playbook when I was planning North Carolina’s recovery from Tropical Storm Helene. Having such a plan in place before the storm would have helped us deliver aid to North Carolina’s mountain communities much faster and in a way that catered to the unique character of those communities.”
FEMA Strategic and Operational Planning Manager

FAQs

RCWMC’s mission is to create resilient, fire-adapted communities to minimize potential impacts of wildfire. A fully fire-adapted community has created and implemented strategies for all four phases of the disaster management cycle to reduce their risk to wildfire and its impacts (i.e. mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery). Through pre and post disaster recovery planning, communities increase their resilience to future disturbances.

You can view the planning assumptions in Section D.7. of the recovery playbook.

This document was written for local government officials and the leaders of community-based organizations who would have essential responsibilities during recovery.

The comprehensive list of contributors can be found in Sections B and D.3. of the playbook. The primary advisors to this project were: Josh Hankes (RCWMC), Alyssa Wihelme (Routt County OEM), Carolina Manriquez (CSFS), Scott Cowman (Routt County Env. Health), Tim Whohlgenant (YV Community Foundation), Jennifer Bruen (United Way), Clinton Whitton (NRCS), Dakota Dolan (YVSC), Tim Sullivan (YVSC), Lisa Ritchie (Town of Superior), Allison James (Town of Superior), Megan Davis (City of Lafayette), and Dr. Susan Washko (Western Colorado University). The author and researcher is Halie Cunningham (RCWMC).

The Routt County Office of Emergency Management, Yampa Valley United Way, Yampa Valley Community Foundation, and the Wildfire Mitigation Council collaborated to form a local “COAD” group (Community Organizations Active in Disasters), which works closely with the OEM and United Way to carry out recovery planning recommendations identified in the Playbook and the county Disaster Recovery Plan. While the COAD coordinates through all the phases of the disaster management cycle, there is a long-term recovery committee that will focus on recovery planning and implementation in the areas of housing, economy, natural and cultural resources, and community and individual assistance.

Examples of existing LTRGs >

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