I’m back in Alabama again, leading FEMA’s response to another set of tornadoes that hit Alabama Jan. 22-23. Every disaster is equally important, because each disaster is such a tragedy for each survivor. For me, knowing we can help even one disaster survivor makes the work worthwhile and makes me glad to be able to help the people of Alabama who have been affected by these storms.
Trussville, Ala., Feb. 5, 2012 -- Damage in the city of Trussville during the severe storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds, and flooding that damaged or destroyed parts of Alabama during the period of January 22-23, 2012.
Since President Obama made the disaster declaration for Alabama on the afternoon of Feb. 1, I’ve been going full-throttle. The next morning I met with Alabama Governor Robert Bentley in Montgomery for the formal signing of the federal-state agreement. I told the Governor that returning to Alabama felt like coming home to family, and he said that over the last year, he couldn’t have asked for more cooperation from FEMA.
Montgomery, Ala., Feb. 2, 2012 -- Joe Girot (L), FEMA Federal Coordinating Officer (FCO) signs the Federal - State agreement for assistance with Alabama Governor Robert Bentley (c) and the Director of Alabama Emergency Management Art Faulkner (r). FEMA is supporting the recovery from the severe storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds, and flooding that damaged or destroyed parts of Alabama during the period of January 22-23, 2012.
Within 72 hours, my team set up five disaster recovery centers (DRC’s) in Chilton and Jefferson counties. Community Relations staff fanned out into the hardest-hit areas and distributed information on the new disaster recovery center locations and guidelines on FEMA registration.
Center Point, Ala., Feb. 3, 2012 -- Duane Marusa, Community Relations Specialist, explains the registration process to a storm survivor in Center Point, Alabama. FEMA is supporting the recovery from the severe storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds, and flooding that damaged or destroyed parts of Alabama during the period of January 22-23, 2012.
Center Point, Ala., Feb. 3, 2012 -- Mary Smith, Community Relations Specialist, explains the registration process to a storm survivor in Center Point, Alabama. FEMA is supporting the recovery from the severe storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds, and flooding that damaged or destroyed parts of Alabama during the period of January 22-23, 2012.
As of today, FEMA has more than $592,000 in funding ready to assist individuals and families whose registrations have already been approved. We have 378 property inspections completed and more than 500 visits have been made to the five DRC’s. The Small Business Association has staff at all the DRC’s and has already distributed 559 loan applications for homeowners and 75 for businesses.
On Sunday I got to speak (in Spanish!) about FEMA’s Individual Assistance programs during a Spanish-language service at the First Methodist Church of Clanton. About 80 people were there, and I was able to be sure they could spread the word about the DRC’s located in Clanton and Maplesville in Chilton County.
Clanton, Ala., Feb. 5, 2012 -- Joe Girot, FEMA Federal Coordinating Officer (FCO) encourages the congregation of Iglesia Metodista San Juan during their service to register for assistance with FEMA. FEMA is supporting the recovery from the severe storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds, and flooding that damaged or destroyed parts of Alabama during the period of January 22-23, 2012.
Clanton, Ala., Feb. 5, 2012 -- FEMA Community Relations Specialists hand out information translated in Spanish to assist non-english speaking survivors. FEMA is supporting the recovery from the severe storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds, and flooding that damaged or destroyed parts of Alabama during the period of January 22-23, 2012.
We’ve just moved into our Joint Field Office in Pelham, Ala., which is more centrally located to the affected areas. All of us working this disaster (DR-4052) are proud to be part of Alabama’s emergency management team, and working with human services agencies, local government officials, and tireless volunteers to get Alabama – once again – back on the road to recovery.
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