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<br />threat was not clearly identifiable to those most exposed and to their govern- <br /> <br />ments and a false sense of security was often prevalent. <br /> <br />By March of 1982, well before the Lawn Lake Dam failure (July 1982) <br /> <br />in Estes Park, Colorado, the Division of Disaster Emergency Services (DODES) <br /> <br />had begun to search for means to accelerate local governmental planning <br /> <br />processes as a nonstructural means of improving dam safety. <br /> <br />'rhe Division <br /> <br />Director (DODES) sent letters to County COl!unissioners urging them to develop <br /> <br />warning and evacuation plans for threatened elements of their population. <br /> <br />Site specific planning oriented to the people ,at risk be<Jan to evolve, but not <br /> <br />with the scale and speed warranted by the threat. <br /> <br />After the Lawn Lake dam failure, a new sense of urgency .to plan more <br /> <br />directly for people at risk surfaced de~pite considerable media concentration <br /> <br />on structural issues, e. g.. inspection of a dam' 5 structure. ,]~his evolution in <br /> <br />understanding still did not adequately influence perceptions in view of the <br /> <br />massive risks involved. <br /> <br />Many residents in potential dam failure, innundation <br /> <br />zones remained unaware of the threat and how 1:0 deal "with it.. Local govern - <br /> <br />ments across the state were similarly unaware. <br /> <br />Essentially, public and <br /> <br />governmental awareness levels were still so low that warning and evacuation <br /> <br />planning, critically important among Ilonstructural means of vulnerability <br /> <br />reduction, were not priority issues. <br /> <br />Both awareness and planning needed <br /> <br />stilnulation and development. <br /> <br />needs as reflected below. <br /> <br />This study was undertaken to respond to these <br /> <br />-3- <br />