Compliance as a mitigation tool in Illinois for the great midwest flood of 1993

ABSTRACT

Shortly after flooding began in the upper Mississippi basin in 1993, it became readily apparent that flooding in Illinois would reach catastrophic proportions. In response to this threat the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and Illinois Department of Transportation, Division of Water Resources (DWR) began to formulate a strategy to deal with the damage sure to occur from this event. The strategy had to deal with all different types of communities sophisticated and unsophisticated, urban and rural, developing and stagnant. The strategy decided upon was called "Compliance as a Mitigation Tool," and is somewhat similar to the strategy known as "Tough Love", used to deal with troubled teenagers. That is, local officials would be given as much help as possible in responding to the aftermath of the flood and in enforcing their community regulations. However, pressure would be kept on the communities to enforce their floodplain management requirements