Cook County & Grand Portage Reservation have completed an updated draft of a shared Hazard Mitigation Plan (HMP) and are now seeking public feedback. Like all Minnesota communities, Cook County & Grand Portage Reservation are vulnerable to a variety of natural hazards such as tornadoes, windstorms, wildfire, severe winter storms, flooding, drought, and extreme temperatures, which can threaten the loss of life and property. Planning for natural disasters minimizes the impact of events that can cause vast economic loss and personal hardship.

All county and reservation residents, as well as other interested agency or organizational stakeholders are strongly encouraged to review and offer feedback on the interactive website, PDF of the draft plan, and proposed local mitigation actions. The review and comment period is open for a period of 15 days through November 26, 2025. The public can access the plan using the following hyperlinks: 

Cook County & Grand Portage HMP Website Homepage (feedback form at the bottom of page)

Cook County & Grand Portage Mitigation Action Charts (feedback form at the bottom of page)

The Cook County & Grand Portage Reservation HMP is a multi-jurisdictional plan that covers all of Cook County, including the city of Grand Marais, townships, and unincorporated communities within the county as well as all of the Grand Portage Reservation.  The Cook County & Grand Portage Reservation HMP also incorporates the concerns and needs of other key stakeholders such as school districts and related agencies, organizations, or businesses participating in the planning process.

Update of the plan has been under direction of Cook County Emergency Management & Grand Portage Emergency Management in cooperation with U-Spatial at the University of Minnesota Duluth. Representatives from county and tribal government and departments, city and township governments and other participating stakeholders also participated in the plan update. Together, the planning team worked to identify cost-effective and sustainable actions to reduce or eliminate the long-term risk to human life or property from natural hazards. Examples include wildfire mitigation planning, flood mitigation projects, construction of safe rooms in areas where residents and visitors are vulnerable to tornadoes and severe storm events; burying powerlines that may fail due to heavy snow, ice, or wind storms; ensuring timely emergency communication to the public, and conducting outreach to increase public awareness of severe weather and personal preparedness.

Hazard mitigation planning helps all of Cook County and Grand Portage Reservation protect both residents and visitors. Working with local communities through the process helps identify vulnerabilities and develop strategies to reduce or eliminate the effects of a potential hazard. In addition, increasing public awareness of natural disasters and encouraging personal preparedness helps to create communities that are resilient to disasters, and breaks the cycle of response and recovery. Updating the plan further allows Cook County and Grand Portage Reservation to be eligible to apply for future FEMA Hazard Mitigation Assistance grant program funding for projects that help to reduce or eliminate the impacts of future natural hazard events.

Community feedback is vital to the success of the plan. Cook County & Grand Portage Reservation invite public review and feedback of the draft plan prior to submitting it to the State of Minnesota and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for review. Feedback may be provided via the online comment forms or directly to Cook County & Grand Portage emergency managers.

Contact:

Mike Keyport

Cook County Emergency Management Director

218- 387-3059

[email protected]

Ruth Vogel

Grand Portage Reservation

Tribal Emergency Management Coordinator

218-248-5849

[email protected]