Corps of Engineers Operation Blue Roof Uses Battlefield Technology to Repair Homes Faster 

Corps Tops 1,600 Temporary Roofs In One Day

Release Date: September 29, 2005
Release Number: 1604-039

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Jackson, Miss. -— The Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced that every day more than 1,000 Mississippi homes damaged by Hurricane Katrina area receiving temporary roofs.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, operating under a FEMA mission assignment, has installed 13,899 blue plastic tarpaulin roofs on damaged homes as of Sept. 28. Operation Blue Roof began on Sept. 9.

FEMA announced that the Corps of Engineers has set up 24 Blue Roof Sign-Up Centers in the impacted counties. The Corps of Engineers has set up a live operator toll-free number - 1-888-ROOF-BLU (1-888-766-3258) -- for people to request temporary roof repair.

The Corps of Engineers is using battlefield analysis of aerial photography – combined with census data – to identify specific homes that can be salvaged with temporary roof repairs. The time-saving information is provided to FEMA staff and Corps Planning and Response teams operating in the devastated areas.

The Corps’ Engineer Research Development Center’s Topographic Engineering Center Team, based in Alexandria, Va., analyzes aerial photographs against census grids to target damaged homes that can receive the temporary repairs necessary to allow people to return to their homes.

The Engineering Center Team provides an aerial view of the information and a map to identify the location by using the latest technology created for soldiers in topographic teams on the ground.

Knowing which homes needed repair and can be salvaged before going in to assist helps FEMA and the Corps save time and money. With the deployment of this battlefield technology, FEMA is able to get people back into their own homes more quickly. The aerial photography analysis has saved FEMA and Corps of Engineers many hours that would otherwise have been spent inspecting homes individually.

The data is dispatched to the more than 200 crews deployed in the field by the Corps for roof repair. The Corps is averaging well over 1,000 temporary roofs installed a day on homes that can be repaired. The Corps reported that 1,646 temporary roofs were installed yesterday, Wednesday, Sept. 28, up from the 1,440 temporary roofs installed on Sept. 27.

An estimated 37,000 roofs will be repaired by the time the mission is accomplished in the next 30 to 40 days. A total of 3 million square miles of the now familiar blue plastic roofing will eventually be installed. Requests for approximately 30,318 temporary repairs have been filed with Operation Blue Roof.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Media interested in embedding with a Corps roofing team can contact Frank Worley at 601-831-3053. Media interested in more information on the battlefield technology deployed to identify roofs that qualify for temporary repair can contact Karen Roberts at 337-281-5663 or email at Karen.e.roberts@us.army.mil.

Last Modified: Friday, 30-Sep-2005 12:49:44