What We’re Watching: 6/24/11

Ongoing Severe Weather

We continue to closely monitor and work with our state and local partners as flooding continues along the Souris River. As you’ve probably seen in the news, local officials have issued evacuation orders for some communities along the river, specifically in Burlington and Minot. As we’ve said on this blog before, we will continue to work with the emergency management team to meet the needs of disaster survivors and the affected communities. Forecasts from the National Weather Service are calling for more rain in the Great Plains and the Midwest, so be sure to follow the direction of local officials and take steps today to get prepared.

And as rivers swell in some parts of the U.S., other areas are fighting a prolonged drought and wildfires. We continue to closely coordinate with state and local officials as wildfires continue across the south in Arizona, Georgia, New Mexico, Texas and Georgia, to name a few.

For your latest weather forecast, visit www.weather.gov or mobile.weather.gov on your smartphone.

NFL Players Encourage Preparedness

Over the past several months, we've worked with many partners from the private sector to encourage disaster survivors to apply for assistance, including the NFL Players Association. In the video below, Vonnie Holliday, defensive linebacker for the Washington Redskins, talks about the importance of getting prepared before a disaster strikes. Check out the video below, and Be sure to take a few minutes to visit Ready.gov this weekend to make a kit, get a plan, and be informed.