Hillsborough County staff are among 26 flood-mapping specialists who completed a two-day federal training aimed at improving how Tampa Bay communities predict and prepare for coastal flooding.

The Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council (TBRPC) hosted the free course on Aug. 19 and 20, led by instructors Doug Marcy and Matthew Pendleton from the NOAA Office for Coastal Management in Charleston, S.C. Participants learned to map inundation zones using geographic information systems, according to TBRPC.

The training matters locally. Apollo Beach and Ruskin sit squarely inside Hillsborough County's Coastal High Hazard Area (CHHA), defined under Florida law as the zone below the Category 1 storm surge line. Both communities are growing fast in that vulnerable footprint.

Plan Hillsborough's 2024 projections show Apollo Beach's CHHA population rising from 11,393 in 2020 to 20,571 by 2050, an 81% increase. Ruskin's CHHA population is projected to grow from 8,550 to 14,881 over the same period, a 74% jump. Together, the two communities account for nearly half of all new residents expected to move into unincorporated Hillsborough's coastal hazard zone.

TBRPC stated the training equips local governments with tools to better prepare for high-tide flooding, hurricanes and intense rainfall as sea levels rise.

The course drew GIS professionals and Certified Floodplain Managers from six counties: Citrus, Hernando, Pasco, Pinellas, Hillsborough and Manatee. The City of St. Petersburg and the Florida Flood Hub also sent staff.

The training feeds into a broader regional effort. TBRPC's Tampa Bay Coastal Master Plan, due for completion in 2028, will address sea-level rise, storm surge, high-tide flooding and rainfall-related flooding across seven counties, including Hillsborough.

"Dozens of local governments, community groups, and many other important entities are actively supporting this effort," Wren Krahl, TBRPC's executive director, told Bay Soundings in May when the council launched a community flood-experience survey for the master plan. "By working together, the Tampa Bay region can achieve greater resilience to rising flood threats."

Hillsborough County has not publicly identified which of its offices sent staff to the training or outlined specific next steps for applying the new mapping tools locally. No follow-up meeting date or public comment opportunity tied to the training has been announced.

The Coastal Master Plan is due in 2028 and will cover Hillsborough and six other counties.