Rapid Flood Exposure Assessment of Vermont Mobile Home Parks Following Tropical Storm Irene

Abstract

Tropical Storm Irene and spring flooding in 2011 exposed the vulnerabilities of mobile home parks in Vermont when 154 mobile homes in parks were destroyed. The question of mobile home parks’ relationship to floodplains was a pressing concern to state officials as displaced households sought to resettle. Little analysis had been done about the extent to which Vermont’s mobile home parks were exposed to flooding and the data to do this analysis had not been assessed or assembled. A spatial overlay analysis largely using multiple sources of existing data revealed that nearly 32% of all mobile home parks in the state have some of their land in floodplains, and more than 20% of all mobile home parks have at least one house in the floodplain. Statewide, nearly 12% of mobile homes in parks are in floodplains. A key element in this assessment was an existing geographic information system (GIS) data set showing the location and E911 addresses of residences, an outcome of Vermont’s decision to geolocate all dwellings in the state and make that data set publically available. Similar data are available in most states but have not been made public. The research demonstrates the benefits to policy makers and emergency planners of creating and making available accurate GIS databases of residences. The utility of this rapid assessment in planning for mobile home park communities is discussed.