HARDWICK – Hardwick is in the process of updating its Local Emergency Management Plan, known locally as The Hardwick Plan. It is updated regularly, typically each year, to reflect changing conditions, lessons learned and local capacity. It serves as the town’s working framework for emergencies and outlines how preparation, response, and recovery efforts are coordinated among town staff, volunteers, community partners and local organizations, such as Hardwick Neighbor to Neighbor.
Looking ahead, the town hopes to take a more coordinated approach to sharing updates and discussing emergency preparedness more broadly with the regional community.
The Hardwick Plan reflects how emergency management works in small towns. It establishes clear roles and decision-making authority for municipal staff and officials, and describes how volunteers and community organizations fit into an organized response. The pieces are designed to work together so help can be mobilized efficiently and responsibly when it is needed.
At a practical level, the plan answers basic questions: How and where is the Emergency Operations Center activated? How are calls and requests for assistance handled? When does an emergency shelter open, and who supports it? How does the town coordinate with neighboring communities, state agencies and trusted local partners? The plan is hazard-agnostic, meaning it is designed to function across a wide range of situations, from flooding and severe weather to extended power outages.
The current update focuses less on adding new layers and more on matching the plan to real- world capacity. This includes clarifying responsibilities, strengthening coordination between staff, volunteers and community partners, and making sure procedures are realistic and usable during an actual emergency. The goal is not to expand roles, but to ensure that everyone involved understands where they fit within a larger system.
Training is an important part of putting the plan into practice. As part of this work, the town is hosting an in-person Emergency Shelter Fundamentals training in partnership with the American Red Cross on February 26, from 1 to 5 p.m at the Jeudevine Memorial Library. The regional training covers how emergency shelters are set up and operated, including staffing, coordination, and support functions, so that systems work as intended when they are needed.
A muck-and-gut training will be scheduled in March, focused on safe and coordinated post-flood response. It will cover basic safety practices, documentation, and role clarity for residents and volunteers assisting with clean-out efforts after flooding.
Within The Hardwick Plan, muck-and-gut work is treated as a structured support function that complements municipal response and recovery efforts, often in coordination with organizations such as Hardwick Neighbor to Neighbor and Northeast Kingdom Organizing (NEKO).
Emergency communications are another key focus of the plan. During emergencies, accurate information and clear routing of requests are essential. The plan outlines how calls and messages are handled, logged, and shared, and how trained communications volunteers support town staff during periods of high demand, while maintaining clear boundaries and accountability.
The Hardwick Plan is not only about what happens during an emergency. It guides preparedness and recovery by identifying gaps, shaping training priorities, and building shared understanding across the community and the region. Over time, this reduces confusion, supports faster response, and allows our towns to rely less on improvisation during high-stress situations.
Most residents will never read The Hardwick Plan directly, but they experience its effects when emergencies are handled calmly, information is consistent and support is coordinated.
The current update reflects ongoing municipal work to ensure Hardwick’s emergency systems are practical, integrated and ready to function when they are needed.
Kristen Leahy is the zoning and floodplain administrator and the resilience and adaptation coordinator for the Town of Hardwick.
