Wednesday, August 30, 2017

Our Communties Globally. HOW TO HELP DISASTER SURVIVORS IN TEXAS

U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Federal Emergency Management Agency
Private Sector Division/National Business Operations Center

 Private Sector Advisory 
HOW TO HELP DISASTER SURVIVORS IN TEXAS

August 29, 2017
The compassion and generosity of the American people is never more evident than during and after a disaster. It is individuals, non-profits, faith- and community-based organizations, private sector partners, and governmental agencies working together that will most effectively and efficiently help survivors cope with the impacts of Tropical Storm Harvey.

Please follow a few important guidelines below to ensure your support can be the most helpful for Tropical Storm Harvey disaster survivors.

TO DONATE TO RELIEF EFFORTS
The most effective way to support disaster survivors in their recovery is to donate money and time to trusted, reputable, voluntary or charitable organizations.

Cash donations offer voluntary agencies and faith-based organizations the most flexibility to address urgently developing needs. With cash in hand, these organizations can obtain needed resources nearer to the disaster location. This inflow of cash also pumps money back into the local economy and helps local businesses recover faster.
Please do not donate unsolicited goods such as used clothing, miscellaneous household items, medicine, or perishable foodstuffs at this time. When used personal items are donated, the helping agencies must redirect their staff away from providing direct services to survivors in order to sort, package, transport, warehouse, and distribute items that may not meet the needs of disaster survivors.

Donate through a trusted organization.  At the national level, many voluntary-, faith- and community-based organizations are active in disasters, and are trusted ways to donate to disaster survivors. Individuals, corporations, and volunteers, can learn more about how to help on the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD) website.
In addition to the national members, The Texas Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (Texas VOAD) has a list of vetted disaster relief organizations providing services to survivors.  Texas VOAD represents more than three dozen faith-based, community, nonprofit and non-governmental organizations.    

TO PERSONALLY VOLUNTEER IN THE DISASTER AREAS

The State of Texas is asking volunteers to not self-deploy, as unexpectedly showing up to any of the communities that have been impacted by Hurricane Harvey will create an additional burden for first responders.
The National VOAD has also noted the situation may not be conducive to volunteers entering the impacted zone and individuals may find themselves turned away by law enforcement.

To ensure volunteer safety, as well as the safety of disaster survivors, volunteers should only go into affected areas with a specific volunteer assignment, proper safety gear, and valid identification.

At this time, potential volunteers are asked to register with a voluntary or charitable organization of their choice, many of which are already in Texas and supporting survivors on the ground.

The National and Texas VOAD websites are offering links to those who wish to register to volunteer with community- and faith-based organizations working in the field.

Most importantly, please be patient. Although the need is great, and desire to help strong, it is important to avoid donating material goods or self-deploying to help until communities are safe and public officials and disaster relief organizations have had an opportunity to assess the damage and identify what the specific unmet needs are.
Volunteer generosity helps impacted communities heal from the tragic consequences of disasters, but recovery lasts much longer than today. There will be volunteer needs for many months, and years, after the disaster, so sign up now.
Tropical Storm Harvey is still dangerous, with the potential to impact additional areas of Texas and Louisiana. As the situation changes, needs may also change in these areas. Continue monitoring traditional and social media channels to learn more.

Follow FEMA online at www.fema.gov/blogwww.twitter.com/femawww.twitter.com/femaspoxwww.facebook.com/fema and www.youtube.com/fema.  Also, follow Administrator Brock Long’s activities at www.twitter.com/fema_brock.

Tuesday, August 29, 2017

August 2017. Vulnerable Population and Exemption from Immigration Enforcement

Thank you Direct Relief for outstanding product.

https://www.citylab.com/environment/2017/08/the-vulnerable-populations-in-harveys-path-mapped/538071/?utm_source=nl__link3_082817


The Vulnerable Communities in Harvey's Path, Mapped

Sunday, August 27, 2017

BLACK EMERGENCY MANAGERS ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONAL: August 2017. 6th Region Diaspora Emergency Operat...

BEMA INTERNATIONAL: August 2017. 6th Region Diaspora Emergency Operat...: A vision to become a reality. CDS.  CEO BEMA International

August 2017. 6th Region Diaspora Emergency Operations Center (DEOC)

A vision to become a reality.

CDS.  CEO BEMA International




August 2017. Louisiana Preparedness Planning

The New Orleans Agenda

Your Alternative Newsletter - News, Arts, Culture & Entertainment!

Wednesday, August 23, 2017                                         For Immediate Release
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United Way of Southeast Louisiana, business and community partners launch New Orleans East Tornado Recovery Plan

Entergy New Orleans to make major gift announcement

United Way
NEW ORLEANS - Community and business leaders, including representatives of United Way of Southeast Louisiana, SBP, Greater New Orleans Foundation, Rebuilding Together and Entergy New Orleans, will gather on Thursday to announce the launch of the New Orleans East Tornado Recovery Plan for assisting families impacted by the Feb. 7 tornado.
Entergy New Orleans will kick off the community-wide fundraising effort with a major gift announcement.
In conjunction with the announcement, the "Neighbors Helping Neighbors" recovery initiative will open with a volunteer build for the Dorsey family, whose home was destroyed in the Feb. 7 storm.

WHEN:  Thursday, Aug. 24, 2017 | 10:30 a.m.

WHERE:  4533 Read Blvd., New Orleans, LA 70127

SOCIAL:  UWSELA Facebook live and Twitter: @UWSELA
                 SBP Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @SBPUSA
VISUALS:
Following the media announcement, Entergy volunteers, SBP staff and HandsOn New Orleans will raise the walls on a new home for the Dorsey family. The volunteer build will continue throughout the day for live-shot opportunities.
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About United Way of Southeast Louisiana
For more than 90 years, United Way of Southeast Louisiana (UWSELA) has been a leader and trusted partner in improving lives and making a lasting difference. We fight to eradicate poverty by preparing people for quality jobs, growing incomes, and affording better health and education opportunities throughout Jefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, and Washington parishes. We have a bold vision of equitable communities where all individuals are healthy, educated, and financially stable - and we have a plan. United Way of Southeast Louisiana's Blueprint for Prosperity guides all strategic investments in programs, initiatives, collaborations, volunteerism, and advocacy aimed at tackling poverty. For more information, please visit UnitedWaySELA.org. Find us on social: @UnitedWaySELA.

Join United Way. GIVE. ADVOCATE. VOLUNTEER. CONNECT.

About SBP
SBP's mission is to shrink time between disaster and recovery. Since its founding in 2006 in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana following the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina, SBP has rebuilt homes for more than 1,300 families with the help of 180,000 volunteers in New Orleans; Joplin, MO; Staten Island, NY; Rockaway, NY; Monmouth and Ocean Counties, NJ; San Marcos, TX; Columbia, SC; White Sulphur Springs, WV and Baton Rouge, LA.

SBP's model is enhanced by AmeriCorps, which provides 180 members annually to manage worksites and clients, and train the organization's volunteers nationally. Through its Disaster Resilience and Recovery Lab (DRRL), SBP works to share lessons learned, prevent common barriers to recovery and help communities utilize SBP's standardized, repeatable and proven-effective model.

SBP shrinks time between disaster and recovery via five interventions:
  1. Rebuild homes quickly after disasters by mobilizing private sector innovations and assigning a single point of contact to make the home rebuilding process faster and more predictable.
  2. Share rebuilding innovations with other rebuilding organizations to allow for efficient, predictable recovery on a national scale.
  3. Prepare home and business owners prior to and following disaster with specific steps to mitigate risk and improve resilience.
  4. Advise policy makers immediately after a disaster so they can deploy federal dollars sooner, and in a way that empowers an efficient recovery.
  5. Advocate for the reform of disaster recovery strategies in the U.S. to improve the predictability and speed of recovery.

To learn more, visit www.SBPUSA.org and like/follow on Facebook & Twitter @SBPUSA

Kirby Jane Nagle
Public Information Officer
United Way of Southeast Louisiana
ph: 501.697.0415


Small Business Administration to Offer Disaster Assistance to Residents Affected by August 5 Flooding

Outreach Center will open tomorrow, August 23


SBA
NEW ORLEANS - Today, Mayor Mitch Landrieu announced that the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) will offer low-interest federal disaster loans to Louisiana businesses and residents affected by flooding that occurred August 4-6, including August 5 flooding in New Orleans.

Loans are open to businesses of all sizes, most private nonprofit organizations, homeowners, and renters whose property was damaged or destroyed by the flooding. The disaster declaration makes SBA assistance available in Jefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard and St. Tammany parishes.

Beginning Wednesday, Aug. 23 through Thursday, Sept. 14, SBA representatives will be on hand at the Disaster Loan Outreach Center to answer questions about SBA's disaster loan program, explain the application process and help each individual complete their application. The center (Mid-City Library, 4140 Canal St. on the second floor in the Long Room) will be open from 10 a.m. until 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday and from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. on Fridays. The Center will be closed in observance of Labor Day on Monday, Sept. 4.

For small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture and most private nonprofit organizations of any size, SBA offers Economic Injury Disaster Loans to help meet working capital needs caused by the disaster. Economic injury assistance is available regardless of whether the business suffered any property damage.

Disaster loans up to $200,000 are available to homeowners to repair or replace damaged or destroyed real estate. Homeowners and renters are eligible for up to $40,000 to repair or replace damaged or destroyed personal property.

Applicants can apply online, receive additional disaster assistance information and download applications at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela.  Applicants can also call SBA's Customer Service Center at (800) 659-2955 or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov for more information on SBA disaster assistance. Individuals who are deaf or hard-of-hearing may call (800) 877-8339. The filing deadline to return applications for property damage is Oct. 23, 2017. The deadline to return economic injury applications is May 22, 2018.

SBA declared a disaster in response to a request received from Gov. John Bel Edwards on Aug. 17, 2017.


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