#HurricaneStrong Partnership

About the Program

Category: Risk and Emergency Management (Best in Category)

Year: 2020

Leon County is a resilient community whose local officials, neighborhood leaders, and community partners work around the clock during disasters to keep us safe. As we’ve learned from Hurricane Hermine, Irma, and Michael in back-to-back-to-back years, every emergency exposes different vulnerabilities, tests a community’s partnerships differently, and reveals opportunities for improvement in different ways. Through these events, Leon County has been committed to continuous learning and improvement by listening to the citizens we serve following disasters and extracting every lesson possible to make our strong response to the last disaster even stronger for the next. This commitment to learning and building resilience has led to Leon County being named the nation's first #HurricaneStrong community in March 2018. Awarded by the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), #HurricaneStrong recognizes our entire community and all the efforts of our neighborhoods, partners and citizens to be a model of resilience for the entire nation. The #HurricaneStrong initiative is designed to increase public safety and reduce economic losses by motivating individuals and families to undertake hurricane preparedness and mitigation activities. Since March 2018, Leon County has continued to fulfill a variety of initiatives, deliverables, and action items through this partnership, furthering our commitment to continually growing stronger and more resilient in the face of disaster.