Silver Jackets teams across the United States bring together agencies from different levels of government to reduce flood risk. Through regular meetings and collaborative projects, team members learn about their agencies’ programs and apply their shared knowledge to enhance flood preparedness, mitigation, response and recovery.
Silver Jackets teams include representatives from agencies with missions in hazard mitigation, emergency management, floodplain management, and natural resources conservation. Each state has its own Silver Jackets team. State agencies with roles in and responsibilities for flood risk management participate in and determine the priorities for their state’s team. Indian Nations may form their own Silver Jackets teams and/or participate in state teams. Federal agencies represented on Silver Jackets teams include the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Federal Emergency Management Agency, National Weather Service, U.S. Geological Survey, Natural Resource Conservation Service, and others. Representatives from county and municipal government, research institutions, and non-profit organizations may also be invited to participate.
Occasionally, Silver Jackets teams address related natural hazards, like drought and wildfire, in addition to flooding.
Why the Name "Silver Jackets"?
Traditionally, different agencies wear different colored jackets when responding to emergencies. For example, FEMA personnel wear blue and USACE personnel wear red. The name ‘Silver Jackets’ was coined to represent many agencies working together to tackle flooding issues.
Silver Jackets Program Goals
- Facilitate strategic life-cycle flood risk reduction.
- Create or supplement a continuous mechanism to collaboratively solve state-prioritized issues and implement or recommend those solutions.
- Improve processes, identifying and resolving gaps and preventing duplication of effort.
- Leverage and optimize resources.
- Improve and increase flood risk communication and present a unified interagency message.
- Establish close relationships to facilitate integrated disaster response and recovery.
The Vermont Silver Jackets Team strives to advance these program goals for the flood risk management needs of the state of Vermont. The interagency team shares and combines resources, including funding, programs, and technical expertise as appropriate to meet the state’s needs. Team goals include fostering continuous interagency collaboration pre- and post-disaster; developing a common understanding of the opportunities and limitations of different agency’s programs; working together to improve the agencies’ flood risk management programs, policies, and processes; implementing high-priority State Hazard Mitigation Plan actions, including through innovative interagency nonstructural flood risk management projects; conducting outreach to deliver unified flood risk messages; and, in cooperation with the emergency managers, jointly participating in response and recovery.
For More Information, Please Contact
Evan Nelson, New York District, email: Evan.M.Nelson@usace.army.milSheila Warren, New England District, email: Sheila.M.Warren@usace.army.mil
Participating Agencies
State
- VT Emergency Management (VEM)
- VT Agency of Natural Resources (ANR)
Federal
- U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - New York and New England districts (USACE)
- Federal Emergency Management Agency – Region 1 (FEMA)
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/National Weather Service – Albany and Burlington Forecast offices, and the Northeast River Forecast Center (NOAA/NWS)
- U.S. Geological Survey – New England Water Science Center (USGS)
- U.S. Department of Agriculture/Natural Resources Conservation Service (USDA/NRCS)
Recent Projects
- Brattleboro Chestnut Hill Dam Break Analysis and Emergency Action Plan
- Coventry, Johnson, Lyndon, and Swanton Ice Jam Assessment and Outreach
- Brandon Flood Loss Avoidance Study
- High-Hazard Potential Dam Analyses for the Vermont State Hazard Mitigation Plan
- Vermont High-Water Mark Signs