FEMA Damage Assessment Teams Deploying to Six Northeast States
Release Date: April 17, 2007
Release Number: R1-07-004
Boston, Mas.. -- In the wake of this week’s powerful nor’easter, Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is deploying damage assessment teams to eight northeast states to take a look at what damages exist. The states where assessments will take place are Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont, New York and New Jersey. The teams are expected to begin the assessments in the next few days working with each state’s emergency management operations.
“Although we have had federal response teams in the states before the onset of the storm, the local, state and federal Preliminary Damage Assessment (PDA) teams are the ‘boots on the ground’ needed to look at the extent of the damages,” said Stephen Kempf, Jr., FEMA Regional Administrator in New York. “Once we see what the scope of the damage is, this will help us determine if there is a need for federal assistance.”
Preliminary damage assessments are a joint effort between local, state and federal officials. During an assessment, teams will be looking at a number of things;
- Amount and type of damage including the number of homes affected and the extent of the damage to those homes (basement flooding vs main floor flooding)
- Impact on the infrastructure of affected areas or critical facilities such as roads, bridges and state and local buildings
- Level of insurance coverage in place for homeowners and public facilities
- Assistance available from other sources (federal, state, local, voluntary organizations)
The damage assessments can take days and sometimes weeks providing there is adequate access to the damaged areas. In many cases, high flood waters can delay a damage assessment because it can be difficult to access those areas until flood waters recede.
“It is important that we are responsive to the states requests for damage assessments and that is why we had teams on standby before the storm hit,” said Art Cleaves, FEMA Regional Administrator in Boston.
FEMA has already activated its Regional Response Coordination Centers (RRCC) in Maynard, MA and New York, NY to assist the states affected. FEMA coordinates the federal government’s role in preparing for, preventing, mitigating the effects of, responding to, and recovering from all domestic disasters, whether natural or man-made, including acts of terror.
Last Modified: Saturday, 21-Apr-2007 00:00:24