2015 Baldwin County, Alabama Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan I. Comprehensive Plan A multi-jurisdiction plan City of Bay Minette City of Daphne Town of Elberta City of Fairhope City of Foley City of Gulf Shores Town of Loxley Town of Magnolia Springs City of Orange Beach Town of Perdido Beach City of Robertsdale Town of Silverhill City of Spanish Fort Town of Summerdale Baldwin County Prepared under the direction of the Baldwin County Hazard Mitigation Planning Committee With the support of the Baldwin County EMA by: Funded in Part through the FEMA Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) Grant Program March 2, 2016 2015 Baldwin County, Alabama, Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan I. Comprehensive Plan City of Bay Minette, City of Daphne, Town of Elbert, City of Fairhope, City of Foley, City of Gulf Shores, Town of Loxley, Town of Magnolia Springs, City of Orange Beach, Town of Perdido Beach, City of Robertsdale, Town of Silverhill, City of Spanish Fort, Town of Summerdale, and Baldwin County Baldwin County EMA Lehe Planning, LLC www.baldwincountyal.gov www.leheplanning.com 23100 McAuliffe Drive 300 Century Park South, Suite 216 Robertsdale, AL 36567 Birmingham, AL 35226 (251) 972-6807 205-978-3633 The preparation and publication of this plan was funded in part by a FEMA grant under the Pre-Disaster Mitigation Grant Program awarded to the Baldwin County Commission. Copyright © 2016 by Lehe Planning, LLC. All Rights Reserved. This document contains proprietary materials and methods copyrighted by Lehe Planning, LLC. Permission is granted to the Baldwin County Emergency Management Agency (EMA) for its internal use. Use by anyone other than the Baldwin County EMA requires the express written permission of Lehe Planning, LLC. You may not copy, modify, publicly display, distribute, reverse engineer, or incorporate into your products or services this document (or any of the information or data structures contained herein) without the express written authorization of Lehe Planning, LLC. March 2, 2016 CONTENTS 2015 Baldwin County Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan Contents Executive Summary ..................................................................................................................... ix Chapter 1 Introduction ......................................................................................................... 1-1 1.1 Background .................................................................................................. 1-1 1.2 Authority ....................................................................................................... 1-1 1.3 Funding ........................................................................................................ 1-2 1.4 Eligibility for FEMA Hazard Mitigation Assistance Grants ............................. 1-2 1.5 Baldwin Co, Alabama, Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan (2004 & Baldwin Co, Alabama, Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan Update (2006) .. 1-4 1.6 The 2010 Baldwin Co. Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan Update ......................... 1-4 1.7 The 2015 Baldwin Co. Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan Update ......................... 1-4 Chapter 2 Prerequisites………………………………………………………………….. ............. 2-1 2.1 Federal Prerequisites ................................................................................... 2-1 2.2 Plan Approval Required for Mitigation Grants Eligibility ................................ 2-1 2.3 Multi-Jurisdictional Participation ................................................................... 2-2 2.4 Multi-Jurisdictional Plan Adoption ................................................................. 2-3 Chapter 3 Community Profiles ............................................................................................ 3-1 3.1 Federal Advisory Guidance for Community Profiles...................................... 3-1 3.2 Summary of Plan Updates ............................................................................ 3-1 3.3 Geographic Setting and History .................................................................... 3-2 3.4 Government ................................................................................................. 3-7 3.5 Physical Features ......................................................................................... 3-7 3.6 Climate ......................................................................................................... 3-8 3.7 Demographics .............................................................................................. 3-8 3.8 Economy .................................................................................................... 3-14 3.9 Utilities ....................................................................................................... 3-19 3.10 Media ......................................................................................................... 3-20 3.11 Transportation ............................................................................................ 3-20 Chapter 4 The Planning Process......................................................................................... 4-1 4.1 Federal Requirements for the Planning Process .......................................... 4-1 4.2 Summary of Plan Updates ............................................................................ 4-2 4.3 Opportunities for Public Comment on the Plan ............................................. 4-2 4.4 Opportunities for Involvement in the Planning Process ................................. 4-4 4.5 Review and Incorporation of Applicable Plans and Documents .................... 4-6 4.6 How the Plan was Prepared ......................................................................... 4-7 4.7 Who was Involved in the Planning Process .................................................. 4-9 4.7.1 The Hazard Mitigation Planning Committee ...................................... 4-9 4.7.2 The Guidelines of the Hazard Mitigation Planning Committee......... 4-11 4.7.3 Preparation of the Plan Update ....................................................... 4-11 iii CONTENTS 2015 Baldwin County Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan 4.8 How the Public was involved in the Planning Process ................................ 4-12 4.9 The Plan Review and Update Process ....................................................... 4-12 Chapter 5 Risk Assessment ................................................................................................ 5-1 5.1 Federal Requirements for Risk Assessments ............................................... 5-1 5.2 Summary of Plan Updates ............................................................................ 5-2 5.3 Identification of Hazards Affecting Each Jurisdiction ..................................... 5-2 5.3.1 Types of Hazards .............................................................................. 5-2 5.3.2 Sources for Identifying Baldwin County Hazards .............................. 5-7 5.4 Hazard Profiles ........................................................................................... 5-11 5.4.1 Hurricanes Profile ........................................................................... 5-11 5.4.2 Floods Profile .................................................................................. 5-26 5.4.3 Severe Storms Profile ..................................................................... 5-30 5.4.4 Tornadoes Profile ........................................................................... 5-32 5.4.5 Wildfires Profile ............................................................................... 5-37 5.4.6 Droughts/Heat Waves Profile .......................................................... 5-43 5.4.7 Winter Storm/Freezes Profile .......................................................... 5-45 5.4.8 Earthquakes Profile ........................................................................ 5-48 5.4.9 Landslides Profile ........................................................................... 5-56 5.4.10 Dam/Levee Profile .......................................................................... 5-59 5.4.11 Sinkholes (Land Subsidence) Profile .............................................. 5-63 5.4.12 Tsunamis Profile ............................................................................. 5-67 5.4.13 Man-made/Technological Hazards Profile ....................................... 5-68 5.5 Vulnerability of Structures within Each Jurisdiction .................................... 5-70 5.5.1 Scope of Structure Inventory ............................................................ 5-70 5.5.2 Inventory Methodology ..................................................................... 5-70 5.5.3 HAZUS-MH Structure Inventory ....................................................... 5-74 5.5.4 Existing & Future Structure Vulnerabilities by Hazard & Jurisdiction . 5-78 5.6 Estimate of Dollar Losses to Vulnerable Structures .................................. 5-111 5.6.1 Scope and Purpose of Loss Estimates ........................................... 5-111 5.6.2 Loss Estimate Methodology ........................................................... 5-111 5.6.3 HAZUS-MH Loss Estimates ........................................................... 5-113 5.6.4 Loss Estimates Based on Historical Records ................................. 5-125 5.6.5 Recommended Risk Assessment Measures .................................. 5-125 5.7 General Description of Land Uses and Development Trends ................... 5-126 5.7.1 Impacts of Development Trends on