MARSHALL — Communities in Lyon County need to be ready for a wide range of emergencies, from tornadoes to floods and blizzards.

This month, Lyon County Emergency Management is asking area residents to share their ideas on how to prepare.

An updated draft of the county’s Hazard Mitigation Plan is open for public review and feedback through Dec. 17, Lyon County Emergency Management Director Emily Coequyt said in a news release. The public can read the plan, learn about different types of hazards in the county, and submit public comment at an interactive website.

Hazard mitigation planning helps Lyon County and area communities protect their residents, Coequyt said. Updating the county plan also helps the county be eligible to apply for federal grant funds for projects to prevent emergencies like flooding.

Lyon County Emergency Management has been updating Lyon County’s HMP with help from the University of Minnesota Duluth, and representatives from county departments, city and township governments, and other area stakeholders, Coequyt said. The planning team worked to find cost-effective and sustainable actions to help reduce risks to life or property in Lyon County. Examples included flood prevention projects, building storm shelters, and improving weather warning systems.

The 2024 Lyon County Hazard Mitigation Plan is available to read online at https://lyon-county-hmp-umn.hub.arcgis.com/. In addition, the website has more detailed information about the planning process; data on Lyon County people, natural hazards, and emergency services; and mitigation strategies for cities in Lyon County. Some of the high-priority hazards the plan looks at include tornadoes and windstorms, flooding and winter storms. Interactive dashboards on the website show the locations of severe weather events in the county going back through history.

People can provide feedback on the draft plan through the website, or by submitting feedback directly to Lyon County Emergency Management. They can also submit ideas for reducing risks in their own communities.

After gathering public feedback, Lyon County Emergency Management will submit the draft plan to the state and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for review.