Trip to the Gulf Coast

Last week, I joined Secretary Donovan of the Department of Housing and Urban Development and Craig Fugate, the President’s new nominee to be FEMA Administrator, on a two-day trip to the Gulf Coast. Our goal was to get a firsthand look at the recovery efforts underway since Katrina and Rita, meet with state and local leaders, and identify outstanding issues.

What we saw on our trip were very clear signs of progress and a clear determination by the people of the Gulf Coast to rebuild and recover from these terrible storms. But we also saw too many communities still in disrepair, too many construction projects either incomplete or not yet started, and too many people still struggling to reclaim their lives.

We spoke with community leaders, first responders, school teachers, and ordinary citizens to get their perspective. We also took a bus and helicopter tour of New Orleans and a helicopter tour of the Mississippi coast to get a better sense of the remaining challenges.

While in New Orleans, I made several announcements that are designed to cut through some of the red tape that for too long has stalled the completion of a number of important projects, including the reconstruction of two police stations and a fire station.

FEMA will provide replacement funding to rebuild these facilities, as well as an additional $12 million to repair a water treatment plant in St. Bernard parish. It will also provide significant funding to Benjamin Franklin High School, one of our nation’s best high schools that suffered significant damage from Katrina.

To ensure that future public assistance requests aren’t bogged down in endless disputes and paperwork, I also announced the creation of two new teams consisting of FEMA and state representatives that will work together to expedite these requests and make decisions.

Finally, FEMA will be extending relocation assistance for people displaced by Katrina and Rita to help them find permanent housing solutions. And it has extended the deadline for hazard mitigation funding for Mississippi, which will give people more time to file their applications and ultimately build more resilient homes and communities.

All of these actions will help the people of the Gulf Coast continue their recovery. We stand with them, and we will continue to support them.

Janet Napolitano

Secretary Napolitano Meets with FEMA Staff

February 3, 2009 – Secretary Napolitano visits U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) headquarters and meets with FEMA employees.

Responding to the Ice Storms

This past week, the Midwest was hit by a terrible ice storm that took the lives of several dozen of our fellow citizens, damaged homes and property, and left many across the region without power. More bad weather is expected to continue over the next several days.

I've been in touch with the Governors of Kentucky, Missouri, and Arkansas and moved quickly to provide federal support. FEMA continues to be actively engaged in the region, providing generators, meals, cots, blankets, and bottled water to residents. It is also helping with debris removal, conducting damage assessments, and assisting with disaster claims. We’re also in touch with the relevant power companies to see how quickly permanent power can be restored.

We are working as quickly as we can to help the victims of this storm and return a sense of normalcy to their lives and the region.

Next week I'll be visiting Kentucky and Missouri to meet with state and local officials and identify what else the federal government can do to support their citizens as they plan for recovery.

Beyond dealing with these recovery efforts, I'll also be traveling to Kansas and Iowa to work on our preparations for the upcoming flood and tornado season, which is just around the corner.

The time to prepare is now. Indeed, last year FEMA faced 90 federally-declared disasters and provided assistance to 36 states. That included the back-to-back hurricanes of Gustav and Ike, deadly tornadoes, Midwest floods, and wildfires.

Thanks to the good work of our DHS employees and everything we're doing now, we'll be ready to respond quickly and support the men, women and families in communities across the country.

Janet Napolitano

First Week

Thank you for your comments to my first post. I appreciate the encouraging words of welcome.

As expected, my first full week has been busy.

I’ve continued to meet with directors of all seven of the Department’s operating components, visit their headquarters locations, and receive briefings on their activities.

I’ve been impressed by what I’ve seen so far – the caliber of the people who work at this Department, their professionalism, and their commitment to our mission.

As Secretary, I want to ensure that our Department continues to uphold the highest ethical standards. For this reason, I’ve ordered that every incoming DHS employee receive ethics training.

This week, I also sent recommendations to President Obama regarding the winter storms that impacted most of our nation’s Midwest and Northeast. He acted on those recommendations, issuing emergency declarations for Arkansas and Kentucky. This will ensure that federal aid flows to these areas. FEMA has been deeply engaged in this process. It began mobilizing assets and resources well ahead of the storm to ensure timely aid and assistance.

Of course, I’ve been intently focused on preparations for Super Bowl 43, and not just because my home team is in the game.

I spoke directly with our head of security in Tampa and received briefings on the Department’s activities related to the Super Bowl, which are extensive.

Finally, I’ve continued to issue action directives to assess the Department's critical functions and set priorities. We rolled out the final action directive today on immigration – to assess our progress to secure the border, remove criminal aliens from the United States, and improve our legal immigration procedures.

I’m eager to get the results of these assessments in the coming days and weeks, and I look forward to sharing these results with you.

Secretary Napolitano