It looked like the congressional log jam was going to last through the holiday break, but finally an aid bill is in process. See Disaster Relief Vote in Senate.

Coming soon from the CRC Press, the 3rd edition of Emergency Management, The American Experience. Due out this summer. The Diva is the editor of the book.

Recently there have been many analyses of why disaster funds are not reaching victims in a timely way.  The Diva has published several articles and links, including a recent study by the GAO.

From Roll Call, another explanation of a major recovery problem: Long After Disasters, Red Tape Leaves Relief Aid Unspent.

As a follow up to the Pew Trust study on state spending, here is an article of interest: How Ohio Designed Its System to Track Natural Disaster Spending. State Emergency Management Agency official discusses effort to better capture costs.

On the negative side, here is an article about delays in North Carolina that could have been avoided.

Welcome news –  the end of this 14 year oil spill. See: A massive Gulf oil spill is finally being contained after more than 14 years. Up to 1,000 gallons of oil per day are being removed from the site of the Taylor Energy spill, says the owner of company that installed a containment system.

Unwelcome news: recently this administration decided to relax oil spill requirements put in place after the BP Oil spill.

India’s Cyclone Fani Recovery Offers the World Lessons in Disaster Preparedness.  Thanks to Chris Jones for the citation.

Here is one more article that provides additional details.

More Accessible Roads Needed for Safe Hurricane Evacuation, Craig Fugate Says. With our growing population, Florida lacks the safe and accessible roadways our residents and visitors can depend on, especially during an evacuation.

From Scientific American: Tech Offers a Virtual Window into Future Climate Change Risk. AI and supercomputing are rapidly shifting the way disaster planners, regulators and insurers gauge climate hazards