A post-disaster town hall meeting is one of the first and most important opportunities for local leaders to update the community on the status of recovery, and set the tone for the entire recovery process. Download this post-disaster town hall meeting agenda template as a Word Document and customize the time, location and content of the… Read more
Tracking volunteer credentials and efforts are an essential part of successfully managing both spontaneous and s, ensuring volunteer safety and also maximizing FEMA funding and reimbursement available for utilizing volunteer services. Download this Excel spreadsheet from the Glade Hill (VA) Volunteer Fire Department to use as a template for tracking volunteer efforts in your locality. You… Read more
The purpose of a plan is to provide the framework for an organization to restore essential functions in the event of an emergency that affects essential operations. Download this customizable template for local government departments and follow the provided instructions on how to fill in the correct information to meet the needs of your jurisdiction and… Read more
This article summarizes an interview with author Kathryn Miles, who spent two years deconstructing Superstorm Sandy for her book Superstorm: Nine Days Inside Sandy. She discusses weather prediction models, the tragic loss of the square-rigger Bounty, what the psychology of risk can tell us about hurricane preparedness, and why it’s essential to keep funding the Hurricane Hunters.… Read more
After several weeks focused on meeting emergency needs, trained Red Cross case managers began meeting with families to help them plan for their recovery and navigate available resources to assist them each step of the way, and developed a recovery plan alongside FEMA and others. By the end of 2012, most emergency needs, though ongoing,… Read more
This article highlights discussions at the New York State Association for Affordable Housing’s (NYSAFAH) 14th Annual New York State Affordable Housing Conference. They found that post Sandy, developers should be looking at current buildings, even those unaffected by the storm, and retrofit them to include new weather precautions as well as preparing community staffs for… Read more
The Hurricane Sandy Task Force lays out suggestions such as building a more resilient and modern electric grid, new flood-protection and more stringent building standards in affected areas. The Task Force voiced strong opposition to simply rebuilding to match the pre-Sandy landscape, and encourages the private sector to investigate less vulnerable fuel distributions routes and… Read more
Despite early forecasts and preparations for disasters such as Sandy, our failure to accept and deal with the long-term effects of climate change, specifically global warming, will be an ongoing problem. Political and economic pressures discourage long-term planning, especially at the federal level. The author highlights the lack of water proofing of the NYC subway… Read more
New flood models predict repeat, and possibly more significant, flooding in areas hard hit by Sandy. Five key lessons are offered to guide rebuilding: Protect existing natural borders such as beaches and dunes. Build the natural barriers higher. Rezone flood areas to prevent new home building. Build parks in their place. Be mindful about building… Read more
After Sandy made landfall, Unitil was able to restore all impacted customers in 2.5 days, with the Capital region completed in less than 52 hours and the Seacoast region completed in 60. The response demonstrated the effectiveness and flexibility of its ERP and ability to handle events of differing sizes. Not only did Unitil complete… Read more
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