FEMA Blog

Posted by: Stephen M. De Blasio Sr., Federal Coordinating Officer, Connecticut Tropical Storm Irene

Dayville, CT, Brooklyn, CT, September 29, 2011 -- FEMA Community Education Specialist, Steven Klein, right, shows a mitigation activity book to local resident Dylan Lacasse, 3, during a community education outreach event at Lowe's. FEMA specialists distributed over 200 cd''s that include mitigation publications for Tropical Storm Irene.

It’s been a month since President Obama’s Sept. 2 major disaster declaration for the state of Connecticut following Tropical Storm Irene. FEMA and its state partners continue to make major strides in the support of the Constitution State’s recovery.

Providing assistance & getting the word out to survivors
Our community relations teams have been canvassing the state and have visited more than 5,600 homes. Working closely with faith-based and community-based organizations, we’ve met face-to-face with nearly 16,000 people to let them know about the many resources available to them for disaster recovery. To date, our community relations teams have also facilitated a dozen local forums, answering requests from towns, congressional staffs, mayors and selectmen. These efforts have led to more than 6,000 residents registering for assistance and more than $4.3 million in aid being disbursed to disaster survivors.

Keeping the pace, we have transitioned 11 Disaster Recovery Centers into seven Small Business Administration (SBA) Disaster Location Outreach Centers, with one disaster recovery center open through Oct. 6. These centers allow residents and business owners to meet with SBA officials to answer their questions, explain SBA’s disaster loan program and help them complete their disaster loan application.

Meanwhile, we continue to meet one-on-one with officials from local jurisdictions to provide information and assistance regarding their damage claims. We currently have more than 80 meetings scheduled with local officials in town and city governments to share information about disaster recovery programs.

Rebuilding tips for Connecticut residents

We’re also helping survivors rebuild smarter, providing the public with tips and advice at 19 home improvement stores throughout the state. While shopping, residents can stop by a mitigation outreach table and find out how to protect their homes from future storms and disasters. Here are details about some of the upcoming mitigation events in:

• Bristol, Madison, Milford and New Haven
• Bridgeport, Dayville, Groton and Old Saybrook

Together with our partners across the emergency management team, we will continue to remain focused on making the state’s recovery a speedy and thorough one.