Ida flooding wreaked havoc 2 years ago. This preparedness event aims to prevent its repeat

Two years ago Tuesday, Hurricane Ida made landfall. On Wednesday, morning hours saw Hurricane Idalia reach Florida's Gulf Coast.

Back in 2021, just days after Ida devastated the southern United States and began sliding up the East Coast, the storm's remnants sent tornadoes, heavy rainfall and record storm surges across the Northeast. Locally, communities along the Brandywine in both Pennsylvania and Delaware were razed by historic flooding.

The Brandywine saw a surge crest over 21 feet, 4 feet higher than previous records, and the largest flood in 200 years. Ida took lives, homes and communities — leaving over $100 million in flood damages to public infrastructure in the region in its wake, according to the Brandywine Conservancy.

One study hopes to never see it happen again. One resident-led group is demanding it doesn't.

The Delaware Resilience Hub, a resource hub focused on community engagement and climate change-fueled disaster readiness that launched earlier this year, will host an emergency preparedness event from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 13.

The free event hopes to pull in residents alongside representatives from the Delaware Emergency Management Agency, Wilmington's Office of Emergency Management, the American Red Cross and more — all to discuss proper emergency planning in the First State.

"When the next disaster comes," said chief hub organizer and community advocate Stacey Henry, "we will not be left the way we were Sept. 2, 2021."

Separately, the Brandywine Conservancy also announced late this month the launch of a "Brandywine Flood Study" in partnership with Chester County (Pa.) Water Resources Authority and the University of Delaware Water Resources Center. The conservancy called it "a coordinated effort to better understand where and why flooding occurs," in its press release, while identifying the best approaches to protect communities from future severe floods.

These organizations said they're committed to continuing to work with impacted communities until residents are "better prepared, protected and equipped to rebound from future severe flooding events."

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Henry hopes she's created the space she has wanted to see for two years.

"My main thing is letting the community know: Here's a place where you can listen, and you can ask these hard questions," said the advocate, honored this month by the Wilmington City Council for her work forming the Delaware Resilience Hub alongside a team of community members.

Memories of flooding, displacement and panic are still fresh on the minds of many residents in Wilmington's Northeast. Floodwaters lifted cars, swallowed bridges. Emergency responders rescued over 200 people from homes, and displaced residents struggled for months to find housing. While city and state response came under fire, Henry formed relief efforts. She disseminated supplies; she helped families find housing; she was recognized as a woman of the year. This summer, she helped an Ida-displaced resident finally find new housing.

Her resilience hub doesn't want to see the same level of devastation repeat.

Their Emergency Preparedness Day plans to pair presentations from DEMA, Wilmington's Office of Emergency Management, the Red Cross and the Resilience Hub with question-and-answer periods for attendees later this month. The open event comes alongside the hub's ongoing efforts to open cooling centers throughout the city in the summer heat, as well as offering emergency kits to help residents stay disaster-ready.

The hub's next cooling center openings are set for Sept. 5 and 6, from noon to 5 p.m. at The Resurrection Center Church, as several days over 90 degrees are expected.

Wednesday's program will focus on preparedness and response.

From state alert systems, evacuation routes, displacement protocol and more: "The people need to know the plan, how we activate the plan — and what to expect when a disaster happens," Henry stressed.

All residents and families are welcome. And a separate workshop will be available for children during the course of the event, allowing for youth-aimed training as well as child care for attending parents.

"What are the steps that I need to take to make sure me and my family are safe?" Henry posed. "This is what we've been asking for, for two years."

If you go

What: Delaware Resilience Hub's Preparedness Day

Where: Wilmington PAL Center, base for the Delaware Resilience Hub — 3707 N. Market St., Wilmington

When: 6 to 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, Sept. 13

Know your enemy ...

A Brandywine Flood Study has launched.

The work will encompass the mainstem of the Brandywine, key tributaries in Chester and Delaware counties in Pennsylvania, and travel downstream to impacted areas in Delaware, according to an announcement Aug. 22. It aims to understand how flooding impact can be reduced while improving public safety and lessening property damage.

“As we approach the two-year anniversary of Hurricane Ida, which caused ... more than $10 million in damages to the Brandywine Conservancy & Museum of Art’s 15-acre campus in Chadds Ford — there is an urgent need for this flood study,” said Grant DeCosta, director of community services for the conservancy, in the press release.

“In order to identify the best strategies for mitigating the impact of future flooding events, we need to better understand all of the factors that contribute to flood levels along the Brandywine Creek and its tributaries."

Following the data gathering and field study phase, according to the conservancy, partners will begin "site assessment" to find ways to mitigate future floods in the study area. Recommended solutions will be evaluated by aspects like impact and cost, aiming for strategic implementation throughout the study area.

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The study is expected to wrap up by June 2024. Public workshops are planned throughout its stages, alongside a flood advisory committee made up of key stakeholders along the watershed.

"In 2021, Hurricane Ida sideswiped our area and caused the biggest flood in 200 years along the historic Brandywine Creek," said Gerald Kauffman Jr., University of Delaware Water Resources Center director, in the release.

"We look forward to working with our upstream partners in this bistate and intergovernmental Brandywine Flood Study to identify the root causes of the flooding, as well as recommend and hopefully implement real flood solutions for the people who live and work in the watershed in Delaware and Pennsylvania."

Have a story? Kelly Powers covers race, culture and equity for the USA TODAY Network's Northeast Region and Delaware Online, with a focus on education. Contact her at kepowers@gannett.com or (231) 622-2191, and follow her on Twitter @kpowers01.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Delaware event aims to prevent repeat of Hurricane Ida flooding