Clay County Iowa Hazard Mitigation Plan

Project Purpose
Clay County, Iowa is at risk to a wide range of natural and manmade hazards. Some examples include tornadoes, floods, winter storms, dam failures, chemical releases, agricultural disease, and more. In response to these risks, Clay County Emergency Management, in collaboration with JEO Consulting Group, Inc., is seeking to better understand how these hazardous events impact the area in order to increase community resilience. To that end, Clay County Emergency Management will be updating its multi-jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan (HMP) over the next year, with the goal of reducing risk to hazards before they happen.
A hazard mitigation plan is a community-guided document that identifies vulnerability to hazards and mitigation projects to reduce or eliminate this vulnerability. Having an approved and updated plan enables your community to be stronger and more resilient by:
1. Reducing your community’s risk and impacts from disasters,
2. Gaining eligibility for pre- and post-disaster mitigation grants, and
3. Building partnerships within your community and across Clay County.
Residents, communities, schools, fire departments, hospitals, and more from Clay County are invited to participate in this process by attending meetings and providing information for the plan.
For more information about Clay County Emergency Management, please visit their website here.

draft plan for public review
The Clay County Hazard Mitigation Plan has begun its Public Review Period, and the current draft is available for review online. You may review the draft plan at the project Google Drive: https://bit.ly/ClayCounty-GoogleDrive. The plan is available for public comment from Friday, February 14 to Thursday, February 27, 2025. Comments can be emailed to rtsoka@jeo.com or you may call (402) 392-9901.
Project Meetings
The planning process includes public meetings to provide an opportunity for participants and interested stakeholders to learn about the plan and provide input. The community workshop was held in January. For those not able to attend, a meeting recording is available here.
Meetings with the City of Spencer and Clay County were held in December.
Meeting worksheets can be downloaded by visiting this Google Drive link: https://bit.ly/ClayCounty-GoogleDrive.
Additional resources
- Project Flyer
- Clay County, Iowa
- Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management
- Drought Monitor
- National Weather Service – Des Moines
- Midwest Regional Climate Center
- FEMA VII: Mitigation
