| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Nola Leyde, 206-764-6896 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers August 29, 2005 SEATTLE -- U.S. Army Corps of Engineers employees are supporting recovery efforts as Hurricane Katrina continues inland. Dubbed one of the most dangerous storms in U.S. history, eight employees from Seattle District are already on the ground in the eastern United States, providing recovery support. Several other district employees have volunteered and may be called upon to support the recovery operations. The Corps responds to national emergencies by supporting the Federal Emergency Management Agency in carrying out the National Response Plan, which calls on 26 Federal departments and agencies to provide coordinated disaster relief and recovery operations. The Corps has a primary role in support of the National Response Plan. The plan describes the basic structure by which the federal government will mobilize resources and conduct response and recovery activities to assist states and local governments in coping with the consequences of significant natural or man-made disasters, to include terrorist events. Within this plan, the Department of Defense has designated the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as the primary agency for planning, preparedness and response under the Emergency Support Function #3, Public Works and Engineering. The type of assistance provided by the Corps includes restoration of critical public services and facilities, including supply of adequate amounts of potable water and ice, temporary restoration of water supply systems, provision of temporary emergency electrical power, temporary emergency housing, structural evaluation of buildings and damage assessment, and clearance, removal, and disposal of debris. Founded in 1896, Seattle District provides a full range of civil and military services to the Pacific Northwest. Seattle District's civil works boundaries encompass 99,000 square miles and contain 4,700 miles of shoreline. The boundaries include the Columbia River system upstream of the mouth of the Yakima River, much of eastern Washington, northern Idaho and western Montana to the Rocky Mountains. For more information, visit the Corps Web site at www.usace.army.mil or contact Nola Leyde, public affairs specialist, at (206) 764-6896. # # # |
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