SanCap Resilience to hold next community event

In collaboration with the city of Sanibel, SanCap Resilience will host “Lessons Learned in Essential Services” on Feb. 1 from 6 to 8 p.m. at BIG ARTS on Sanibel and livestream it on the city’s Facebook page. It is the fourth event in the series “Emerging from Hurricane Ian Stronger and More Resilient.”
“While there are many things that contribute to our community’s resilience, there are probably none as fundamental as electricity, water and wastewater,” Mayor Richard Johnson, who will give a keynote address, said. “The response by our utilities to restoring these systems after the storm was truly admirable, but it’s important that we take the lessons learned from that experience and identify what can be done to both reduce damage in future storms and restore services more quickly if possible.”
The program will explore key lessons learned, actions taken and future plans related to the resiliency of the local power grid, water supply and wastewater management. It will feature a panel of experts, including LCEC Key Account Executive Tricia Dorn and Allan Ruth, incidence commander for Hurricane Ian; Island Water Association General Manager Diane Wilson; and Sanibel Public Works Department Deputy Director Scott Krawczuk. SanCap Resilience Chair Bob Moore will moderate.
They will each give a short presentation addressing the following key questions:
– What did Ian teach your organization about the strengths and vulnerabilities of your operations in Sanibel and Captiva?
– How have you been able to address those vulnerabilities in the time since the storm or plan to address in the near term?
– Considering the expected future impacts of climate change — extreme heat days, stronger storms, increased flooding, sea level rise and storm surge, et cetera — how is your organization planning strategically for the future?
After the presentations, attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions in a Q&A session facilitated by Sanibel Public Information Officer Eric Jackson.
Admission is free, and no registration is required.
“We’re grateful to our panelists for making the time to be a part of this event,” Moore said. “This is a chance for the community to learn what actions have already been taken to improve resilience and to ask questions that reflect their concerns for the future.”
SanCap Resilience is a coalition of 16 community organizations and citizens. Its mission is to lead a community-based initiative to build resilience and protect the vibrancy of the sanctuary islands.
For more information, visit https://www.sancapresilience.org/.
BIG ARTS is at 900 Dunlop Road, Sanibel.