Highlights
The Federal Emergency Management Agency is the government's disaster relief agency, charged primarily with responding to natural disasters, such as hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, floods and acts of terrorism. Based in Washington, D.C., with offices around the country, FEMA has more than 2,600 full-time employees with another 4,000 on standby to respond to disasters.
FEMA was created in 1979, combining several agencies with disaster-related responsibilities. It operated as an independent agency until 2003, when it became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. FEMA provides grants to communities for disaster protection measures. After a disaster strikes, FEMA provide...
FEMA was created in 1979, combining several agencies with disaster-related responsibilities. It operated as an independent agency until 2003, when it became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. FEMA provides grants to communities for disaster protection measures. After a disaster strikes, FEMA provide...
The Federal Emergency Management Agency is the government's disaster relief agency, charged primarily with responding to natural disasters, such as hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, floods and acts of terrorism. Based in Washington, D.C., with offices around the country, FEMA has more than 2,600 full-time employees with another 4,000 on standby to respond to disasters.
FEMA was created in 1979, combining several agencies with disaster-related responsibilities. It operated as an independent agency until 2003, when it became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. FEMA provides grants to communities for disaster protection measures. After a disaster strikes, FEMA provides financial assistance and supplies for recovery and rebuilding. Under its public assistance program, FEMA reimburses local and state governments for expenses including overtime for emergency personnel, debris removal and repairs to public utilities. Individual homeowners and renters are also eligible for assistance for uninsured losses. FEMA came under criticism in 2004 in Florida, which was hit by four hurricanes in six weeks. A South Florida Sun-Sentinel investigation found FEMA awarded more than $31 million to residents of Miami-Dade for a hurricane that missed the county. FEMA even paid funeral expenses for deaths unrelated to the storm.
The Sun-Sentinel investigation found the same patterns in disasters across the country with hundreds of millions of dollars intended for disaster victims going to people who suffered no damage. When the catastrophic Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans and the Gulf coast in 2005, FEMA drew widespread criticism for its slow response and massive fraud and waste. In the aftermath of the storm, government investigators found FEMA paid more than $1 billion in fraudulent claims. FEMA's top administrator is R. David Paulison. He was appointed by President George W. Bush and reports directly to the Secretary of Homeland Security. In addition to directing the agency, the Administrator may also be called upon by the President to serve as a member of the Cabinet in the event of natural disasters, acts of terrorism, or other man-made disasters.
Their offices are located at 500 C Street S.W., Washington, D.C. 20472. Questions can be directed to www.fema.gov or call 800-621-FEMA (3362).
FEMA was created in 1979, combining several agencies with disaster-related responsibilities. It operated as an independent agency until 2003, when it became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. FEMA provides grants to communities for disaster protection measures. After a disaster strikes, FEMA provides financial assistance and supplies for recovery and rebuilding. Under its public assistance program, FEMA reimburses local and state governments for expenses including overtime for emergency personnel, debris removal and repairs to public utilities. Individual homeowners and renters are also eligible for assistance for uninsured losses. FEMA came under criticism in 2004 in Florida, which was hit by four hurricanes in six weeks. A South Florida Sun-Sentinel investigation found FEMA awarded more than $31 million to residents of Miami-Dade for a hurricane that missed the county. FEMA even paid funeral expenses for deaths unrelated to the storm.
The Sun-Sentinel investigation found the same patterns in disasters across the country with hundreds of millions of dollars intended for disaster victims going to people who suffered no damage. When the catastrophic Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans and the Gulf coast in 2005, FEMA drew widespread criticism for its slow response and massive fraud and waste. In the aftermath of the storm, government investigators found FEMA paid more than $1 billion in fraudulent claims. FEMA's top administrator is R. David Paulison. He was appointed by President George W. Bush and reports directly to the Secretary of Homeland Security. In addition to directing the agency, the Administrator may also be called upon by the President to serve as a member of the Cabinet in the event of natural disasters, acts of terrorism, or other man-made disasters.
Their offices are located at 500 C Street S.W., Washington, D.C. 20472. Questions can be directed to www.fema.gov or call 800-621-FEMA (3362).
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Rockefeller Center tree lighting tonight
A Mississippi family who lost their home in Hurricane Katrina -- and got a new house partly built with last year's Rockefeller Center Christmas tree -- will be among the throngs attending this year's lighting ceremony.
An eight-ton, 72-foot Norway spruce...Tags: Jimmy Carter, Tony Bennett, Christmas, Hurricane Preparedness, Jamie Foxx
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Obama vows to listen to governors and to act swiftly on helping states survive the recession
Associated Press WriterPHILADELPHIA (AP) _ President-elect Barack Obama promised swift action Tuesday on an economic plan "to solve this crisis and to ease the burden on our states," and he cast governors as his partners in crafting a recession-rebound strategy. "This...Tags: Joe Biden, National Government, 2009 U.S. Presidential Inauguration, Executive Branch, Rahm Emanuel
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Tropical Storn Fay led unrelenting barrage of storms
Sentinel Staff WriterFor Central Florida, the worst part of the 2008 hurricane season wasn't even a hurricane. Tropical Storm Fay drenched the region in late August, causing nearly $80 million in damages. Even today -- the last day of the official hurricane season -- some...Tags: Emergency Planning, Seminole County, Tornadoes, Hurricane Damage, Local Authority
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Months later, Tropical Storm Fay still lingers
Sentinel Staff WriterIt's been more than three months since Tropical Storm Fay drenched Central Florida, leaving a trail of flooded homes and washed-out roads. The water's gone, but as the hurricane season concludes, disrupted families are still trying to figure out what to...Tags: Hurricane Preparedness, Volusia County Sheriff's Office, Homes, Volusia County, Natural Disasters
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We Need A Truth Commission
Following two relatively close presidential elections, the finality of the recent vote is striking. After the elections of 2000 and 2004, the certainty of the outcome felt odd. When Barack Obama spoke to the massive crowd filling Grant Park in Chicago...Tags: National Government, Depression, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Nelson Mandela, Barack Obama
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Leesburg fire chief offers tips for safety
Sentinel Staff WriterVolusia County residents already receive telephone warnings when severe weather is approaching, but with a new $58,500 grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the county hopes to provide warnings more quickly and efficiently. Under the old...Tags: Volusia County, Weather Warnings
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Number of FEMA mobile homes in Iowa drops
The number of Federal Emergency Management Agency mobile homes in Iowa used to provide temporary housing to disaster victims has dropped by nearly 200. The agency had 747 mobile homes in Iowa in mid-October, and now there are just 548, with most of them...Tags: Relief and Aid Organizations, House Building, Disasters, Newspapers, Fires
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A family becomes collateral damage from the Sylmar wildfire
In one bedroom, there is still a stack of hand-written flashcards on the windowsill, where one of the twins left them: Anomalous. Antipathy. Assuage. On the floor, there is a little box of nail polish -- lime green, another called "berry framboise." On...Tags: Vehicles, Fires, Wildfires, Apartments, Metal and Mineral
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Fort Lauderdale looks to FEMA to reimburse for storm cleanup, repairs that insurance doesn't cover
South Florida Sun-SentinelThree years after Hurricane Wilma ripped up Fort Lauderdale's high-priced beach lifeguard stands and ran up an estimated $5.6 million in what they considered insurable damage, commissioners have settled with the insurance company for $1.6 million....Tags: Fort Lauderdale, Government, Public Officials, Insurance, Disasters
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FEMA paying 100 percent of debris removal from Ike affected Texas counties for 6 more months
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) _ The federal government will pay Hurricane Ike debris-removal costs in Texas for six more months, but Gov. Rick Perry's office said the extension is inadequate. The Bush administration late Wednesday announced the extension of 100...Tags: Hurricane Preparedness, Executive Branch, Natural Disasters, Meteorological Disasters, Regional Authority
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Trailers scrapped
The Associated PressThe government is selling travel trailers to the public that were banned as emergency housing in disasters because many had toxic levels of formaldehyde. As of Oct. 27, FEMA identified 10,000 units that could be designated as scrap and sold. Residents...Tags: Emergency Planning
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Residents of Sylmar mobile home park line up to survey fire-ravaged community
Hundreds of evacuees from Oakridge Mobile Home Park began lining up at Sylmar High School evacuation center before 9 a.m. today to board police vans for a first look at their fire-ravaged community. Police are restricting access to the park because it is...Tags: Medicine, Sylmar, Thanksgiving, Games, Game Playing
Dec 3, 2008
|Story| Newsday
Dec 2, 2008
|Story| Associated Press
Nov 30, 2008
|Story| Orlando Sentinel
Nov 30, 2008
|Story| Orlando Sentinel
Nov 30, 2008
|Story| Hartford Courant
Nov 23, 2008
|Story| Orlando Sentinel
Nov 28, 2008
|Story| Associated Press
Nov 28, 2008
|Story| Los Angeles Times
Nov 28, 2008
|Story| South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Nov 26, 2008
|Story| Associated Press
Nov 14, 2008
|Story| South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Nov 17, 2008
|Story| Los Angeles Times
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