Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office Receives Mitigation Funding 

Release Date: September 13, 2007
Release Number: 1603-712

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NEW ORLEANS, La. -- In a recently approved grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), funding has been designated to wind retrofit the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office (JPSO).

During Hurricane Katrina, the five-story building located in Harvey was severely damaged by water and flying debris. Installation of hurricane shutters designed to withstand winds up to 110 miles per hour will reduce the building's vulnerability to wind damage in future hazard events, particularly hurricanes. During emergencies the office is used as a shelter and command center for the sheriff's department operations.

"Approximately 456,000 residents of Jefferson Parish depend on the essential services provided by the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office," said Jim Stark, FEMA's director of the Louisiana Transitional Recovery Office. "Once the hurricane shutters are installed, the facility will better protect essential immovable equipment and remain functional for emergency response during future disasters."

Project funding totaling $353,250 has been earmarked to retrofit the building with a projected completion date of Sept. 30, 2010. Other mitigation alternatives were considered but retrofitting was deemed the most cost effective and beneficial mitigation action.

When projects are obligated by FEMA through the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, the funds are transferred to a Smartlink account. This allows the grantee, the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, to draw down the funds as quickly as possible. The state may require additional information from the subgrantee before disbursing the funds.

The Hazard Mitigation Grant Program provides grants to states and local governments to implement long-term hazard mitigation measures after a major disaster declaration, to reduce the loss of life and property due to natural disasters and to enable mitigation measures to be implemented during the immediate recovery from a disaster.

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: Thursday, 13-Sep-2007 11:26:52