WEST PITTSTON – Since the Tropical Storm Lee flooding in 2011, West Pittston has been working to make the borough more disaster resistant.
The borough completed grant funded acquisition/demolition projects, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 205 Study for a structural project and a Feasibility Study for a Non-Federal Flood Damage Reduction Project.
The borough partnered with the Luzerne County Flood Protection Authority on the installation of a radar gage and a staff gage on the Fort Jenkins Bridge and participation in the FEMA Community Rating System Program. The borough joined the program in May 2020 which affords property owners in the Special Flood Hazard Area a 15 percent reduction on their annual flood insurance premiums while non-SFHA property owners receive a 5 percent savings. The estimated annual savings to West Pittston residents is in excess of $25,000 annually.
The borough is again working with LCFPA and the Susquehanna River Basin Commission, the United States Army Corps of Engineers and others to update the Flood Warning and Response System, which was originally developed nearly 20 years ago. The FWRS is a computer-based tool which provides community officials and emergency managers with flood depth mapping to facilitate emergency response, assess damages, and recover quickly from an event.
To update the FWRS tool, the borough mailed a data questionnaire to all residents impacted by the 2011 Tropical Storm Lee.
The borough is requesting that all residents who receive the letter complete the attached questionnaire and return it to the borough by the deadline on July 24. The survey can also be completed online by going to the borough website. The borough needs the public’s cooperation and assistance with this effort so that they can collect the most accurate information possible. The public’s participation is vital to the implementation of this project.
Completed questionnaires can be returned to Mr. Alan Brezinski, West Pittston Borough Floodplain Manager, 555 Exeter Avenue, West Pittston, PA 18643 or completed online by going to the Borough website, www.westpittstonborough.com by July 24, 2020.
