To our members and friends in the Caribbean, Southern and Eastern Seaboard Region.
Situation:
Hurricane
Irma is currently a Category 3 Hurricane located in the eastern Atlantic Ocean
with forecast to become a Category 4 Hurricane by Tuesday, September 5th. While
the forecast is uncertain, current projected timeframes for a Tropical Storm
force winds affecting Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands as early as
Wednesday, September 6th 2017.
Review individual, family, and community emergency plans.\
Ensure emergency kits are stocked, and as recommended include a
personal water purification kit.
Follow instructions of local emergency management office\agency,
If you have family members in the regions that may be instructed
establish a communications\contact system NOW
For additional information on storm tracking review you local MASS NOTIFICATION SYSEM in place in your jurisdiction, and review National Weather Service reports.
FEMA Advises Disaster Applicants to Beware of Rumors, Misinformation, and Fraud
Release date:
August 31, 2017
Release Number:
HQ-17-076
WASHINGTON - The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is raising awareness that Hurricane Harvey disaster survivors, and their friends and family, must be alert for false rumors, scams, identity theft, and fraud. Although many Americans are working hard to help their neighbors now, during chaotic times, some will always try to take advantage of the most vulnerable.
To dispel some of the false rumors circulating on the internet and social media, FEMA created a dedicated website to address some of the most common themes. Remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Visit https://www.fema.gov/hurricane-harvey-rumor-control to get the most accurate information from trusted sources.
Here is how to protect yourself, or someone you care about, from disaster fraud:
Federal and state workers do not ask for, or accept, money. FEMA staff will never charge applicants for disaster assistance, home inspections, or help filling out applications. Stay alert for false promises to speed up the insurance, disaster assistance, or building permit process.
In person, always ask to see any FEMA employee ID badges. FEMA Disaster Survivor Assistance teams may be in impacted communities providing information and assisting survivors with the registration process or their applicant files.
A FEMA shirt or jacket is not proof of identity. All FEMA representatives, including our contracted inspectors, will have a laminated photo ID. All National Flood Insurance Program adjusters will have a NFIP Authorized Adjuster Card with their name and the types of claims they may adjust.
If you are unsure or uncomfortable with anyone you encounter claiming to be an emergency management official, do not give out personal information, and contact local law enforcement.
If you suspect fraud, contact the FEMA Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721 or report it to the Federal Trade Commission at www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov.
More information on disaster-related fraud is available at the Texas Attorney General’s Office website at texasattorneygeneral.gov/cpd/disaster-scams or call -800-252-8011.
In Louisiana, disaster-related fraud information is available on the State Attorney General’s Office website at http://www.agjefflandry.com or contact the National Center for Disaster Fraud’s hotline at 1-866-720-5721.
Please refer to the following FEMA website for initial information on the current Disaster Declaration in Texas, and the Emergency Declaration for Louisiana.
Additional information on FEMA, State, County websites and information to follow on response, recovery, and mitigation for both significant events.
Due to the nature and severity of these events of 'national significance' the Department of Homeland Security are constantly review the effects of these events on the 16 Critical Infrastructure Sectors listed below. the national critical infrastructure protection.
Separately, daily conference calls are held with DHS Critical Infrastructure Sectors members, and FEMA on status response and recovery.
Additional information to be forwarded when received.
Our link to the West Coast Los Angeles Immigrant Community.
Additionally we are promoting with all BEMA International members with a large immigrant community CERT (community emergency response team) awareness, education & training to prepare our 'whole community' to address planning, preparing, responding, and recovery from disasters.
BEMA International
The African Coalition is collaborating with Hearts of Mercy ( a non-profit ) organization, in bringing
education opportunity for refugees and asylum seekers. Hearts of Mercy is
working hard advocating and supporting asylum seekers' education
dream.
Currently, Hearts of Mercy at UCI is launching a
scholarship fund to provide financial grants to asylum seekers who are
incoming or continuing students admitted at a University of California
campus.
If you are / or know an
asylum seeker looking to complete your higher education at a UC campus please
contact Senait Admassu (sadmassu@africancoalition.org) or Iman
Siddiqi (ihsiddiq@uci.edu).
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.
Aid organization Direct Relief has created maps using ESRI that show the poor, immigrant, elderly and disabled communities in harm’s way.
Updated on August 27 at 3:30 p.m.
At least five deaths and dozens of injuries have been attributed to Hurricane Harvey, as it pummeled parts of the Houston region with 24 inches of rain and swirling winds. The storm has been downgraded to a tropical storm, from a Category 4 at its height, but catastrophic flooding is expected to intensify as rains continue, according to the National Weather Service.
Like in the case of previous disasters like Katrina and Sandy, the heaviest cost of Harvey’s destruction is likely going to be borne by the most vulnerable communities in its path. Here’s what disaster historian Jacob Remes tweeted out about Harvey:
Humanitarian aid organization Direct Relief has created interactive ESRI maps that show exactly where these communities are. The mapmakers have used the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) social vulnerability index to show the geographic distribution of households with elderly or disabled members (in orange), immigrant and limited English-speaking populations (in purple), and pockets of poverty (in green). The darker the color, the higher the concentration of these factors in each region:
While many South Texans evacuated north per the recommendation of Governor Greg Abbott, poorer or disabled residents may not have had the resources or the capability to follow that advice. Many undocumented immigrants, as well, may have chosen to stay behind because Border Patrol refused to suspend its checkpoints during the storm. (The governor did affirm, however, that shelters will be exempt from immigration enforcement.) Some inmates were evacuated, while others are weathering the storm in place.
Within cities, poor communities of color often live in segregated neighborhoods that are most vulnerable to flooding, or near petrochemical plants and Superfund sites that can overflow during the storm. This is especially true for Houston—a sprawling metropolis, where new development has long been spreading thinly across prairie lands that help absorb excess rainwater. And it’s long been understood that the city is unprepared to handle the effects of a storm as unprecedented as this one.
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.
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.
###
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.
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:
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.
Share rebuilding innovations with
other rebuilding organizations to allow for efficient, predictable
recovery on a national scale.
Prepare home and business owners prior
to and following disaster with specific steps to mitigate risk and
improve resilience.
Advise policy makers immediately after
a disaster so they can deploy federal dollars sooner, and in a way that
empowers an efficient recovery.
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
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.
