NFPA Journal - January/February 2018 - 19

Dispatches

LITTLE HELP...
A spate of natural disasters, driven by a historic
rain event associated with Hurricane Harvey in
Texas, has resulted in a spike in the number of
people registering for federal disaster aid.

DISASTER RECOVERY

BIG NEED

FEDERAL AID CLAIMS SKYROCKET IN A
YEAR PACKED WITH NATURAL DISASTERS

GETT Y IMAGES

By Angelo Verzoni
It was a historic year for all manner of natural disasters
in the United States in 2017, which has resulted in roughly
10 times as many Americans registering with the Federal
Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for disaster aid
than in 2016.
According to a report by the Washington Post, as of
mid-November more than 4.7 million Americans had registered with FEMA, compared to just 480,000 in 2016. From
2013 to 2015, the number was fewer than 180,000 each year.
Starting in September, three major hurricanes slammed
parts of the U.S. coast and Puerto Rico in rapid succession, killing more than 100 people and displacing tens of
thousands. In October, wildfires torched California's wine
country, killing dozens more and destroying thousands of
homes. (See cover story, "Build. Burn. Repeat?," page 24).
The claims are expected to cost taxpayers tens of billions
of dollars. Total damage estimates for Hurricanes Harvey,
Irma, and Maria alone have, by some guesses, topped $350
billion. In September, Congress authorized $15.3 billion in
disaster-relief funding. The next month, it authorized $36.5

billion more. And in November, the White House asked
for another $44 billion. FEMA has also tapped into private
companies and other federal agencies, including the Internal Revenue Service, to add 3,000 staffers to handle the
dramatic spike in claims.
In response to 2017's string of disasters, current and
former federal emergency management officials have
stressed the need for the public and private sectors to come
together with civilians and communities to both recover
from these most recent events and be ready for future ones.
"You have to know the hazards and vulnerabilities and
how to be prepared, based on where you work and where
you live and where you visit," FEMA Administrator Brock
Long told the Post. In several statements and interviews
following each disaster, he has urged all Americans to adopt
what he calls a "culture of preparedness."
Similarly, former FEMA deputy administrator Richard
Serino said the term "whole community" was coined during
his years with the agency, from 2009 to 2013, to describe the
need for individuals to take on a greater responsibility when
it comes to being prepared for disasters. "We tried to shift
the mindset to look at the public as an asset rather than a
liability," he told NFPA Journal. "I think we need to ask how
the public can play an even bigger role. Government plays a
huge role, but working together with the private sector and
individuals is the only way anything is going to get done."
Serino spoke with the magazine for an article in the
November/December 2017 issue, which features a comprehensive package of coverage on Hurricanes Harvey, Irma,
and Maria. Read the entire package, titled "Storm Season,"
at nfpa.org/stormseason.
N F PA . O R G / J O U R N A L * NFPA JOURNAL

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NFPA Journal - January/February 2018
