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Ramsey County Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan, 2018 <br /> <br />Page | 55 <br /> <br />Program Gaps or Deficiencies <br />Aboveground Power Lines – Much of the power lines in the county are aboveground and subject to <br />damage from ice storms, wind, and falling tree limbs resulting in power outages. Ramsey County and <br />municipalities will work with power utilities to prioritize burying power lines. <br />Backup Power – Not all county or municipal facilities have backup power to critical facilities in the event <br />of a severe winter storm that results in an extended power loss. <br />Communications – Everbridge’s open subscription service was made available to the public in September <br />2016 (https://www.ramseycounty.us/alerts). However, not all residents have subscribed to or follow our <br />Facebook page to receive important messages. Additionally, there are translation services for only three <br />languages (Spanish, Somali, and Hmong). There are over 100 identified languages spoken in Ramsey <br />County, and more than 50 are spoken preferentially in the home. Ramsey County Emergency <br />Management and Homeland Security will, in cooperation/coordination with other partners, place an <br />emphasis on increasing citizen subscription to Everbridge. <br />Severe Weather Shelters – The state requires shelters for manufactured home parks with 10 or more <br />manufactured homes per MN Statute 327.20. Ramsey County has 14 manufactured homes parks. Of <br />these parks, 12 have indicated they have shelters, one has stated it does not and one is in an unknown <br />status meaning that the shelter may or may not exist, and if it does, it may or may not be habitable. It is <br />also unknown with all the parks whether the existing shelters have capacity needed for populations <br />present. Given that this has become an issue with local media of late, Ramsey County Emergency <br />Management and Homeland Security will, in cooperation/coordination with other partners, place an <br />emphasis on this activity. See KSTP News Story here: http://kstp.com/news/mobile-home-park-severe- <br />weather-storm-shelter-minnesota-law-nowhere-to-hide-chetek-wisconsin/4564189/?cat=5 <br /> 4.4.4 Hail <br />Hailstorms are a product of severe thunderstorms. Hail is formed when strong updrafts within the <br />storm carry water droplets above the freezing level, where they remain suspended and continue to <br />grow larger, until their weight can no longer be supported by the winds. Hailstones can vary in size, <br />depending on the strength of the updraft. The NWS uses the following descriptions when estimating hail <br />sizes: pea size is ¼-inch, marble size is ½-inch, dime size is ¾-inch, quarter size is 1-inch, golf ball size is <br />1 ¾-inches, and baseball size is 2 ¾-inches. Individuals who serve as volunteer “storm spotters” for the <br />NWS are located throughout the state, and are instructed to report hail dime size (¾-inch) or greater. <br />Hailstorms can occur throughout the year; however, the months of maximum hailstorm frequency are <br />typically between May and August. Although hailstorms rarely cause injury or loss of life, they can cause <br />significant property damage. <br />Hail History in Ramsey County <br />The NCEI has recorded 179 hail events in Ramsey County between 1950 and April 2018. While no <br />deaths or injuries have been recorded due to these events, they did cause over $7 million in property <br />damage. <br />The most recent hailstorm with recorded property damage in the county occurred in September of <br />2010. Hail the size of half dollars fell in the Highland Park area of St. Paul, northeast across the city. $5 <br />million in property damage was recorded.