Hurricane Maria Prompts Rare Investigation into Building Damage. The National Institute of Standards and Technology inquiry will also examine communications failures and the storms’ death toll.
According to this article NIST is looking into the resilience of buildings,
Here is the link for: Senior Leader Toolkit. It contains:
The Diva has not had time to read it all, but welcomes comments from those who have.
From the NYTimes, this article about recovery: How the University of Iowa Recovered From the ‘Unfathomable’ Flood That Ruined It. Two excerpts:
Working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to get the federal portion of rebuilding costs was “a challenge,” recalled Sally Mason, the president of the university during the flood and its aftermath. The complications included navigating arcane federal rules and dealing with a changing cast of officials. That the process ended up a success story is a testament to the university’s persistence, patience and the deployment of the university’s resources to address the problems.
Of all the lessons from 2008, perhaps the most important is that “mother nature’s changing on us,” *** and although the campus is better protected than ever before, “you can never feel quite comfortable about something you don’t control,” ***.As Mr. Guckert put it, “We haven’t seen our worst flood yet.”
From the Congressional Research Service, this report (34 pp.): Private Flood Insurance and the National Flood Insurance Progress
Presently, Congress is holding up disaster relief monies for several disasters. The lengthy delay there is made worse by the President’s comments at a recent rally. From the Huff Post: Trump Pits Florida Against Puerto Rico Over Emergency Aid: ‘They Don’t Like Me’
The president told supporters at his rally that Puerto Rico received more hurricane disaster relief than states like Florida.
The Trump administration plans to provide 90% of federal emergency cleanup funds to the state of Florida to help with repair after Hurricane Michael struck last October, Trump said at his rally in Panama City Beach, Florida. Aware of complaints about a lack of disaster relief funding, the president blamed Democratic lawmakers and told his supporters, “You’re getting your money one way or the other.”
But the president was unable to announce his support for aid in Florida without once again demonizing the island of Puerto Rico, which continues to struggle after Hurricane Maria hit in 2017, causing an estimated 3,000 deaths.
Trump falsely claimed Wednesday that Puerto Rico “got $91 billion” in aid after Hurricane Maria in 2017 and complained that the island is asking for more money. He also said Puerto Rico received the largest amount of aid ever distributed, which is also false
From HSToday: OIG: FEMA Wasted Resources, Time and Money in Puerto Rico Hurricane Recovery Contracting.
…the audit found that FEMA inappropriately awarded two contracts to Bronze Star, which did not meet the requirements of either contract. OIG says this deficiency delayed delivery of crucial supplies, and impeded Puerto Rican residents’ efforts to protect their homes and prevent further damage. In summary, OIG says FEMA wasted personnel resources, time, and taxpayer money by issuing, canceling, and reissuing contracts for tarps.
Note: a direct link to the URL for the full (26-page) report is provided at the end of the article.
From Inside Climate News: Humanity Faces a Biodiversity Crisis. Climate Change Makes It Worse. People are destroying the world’s natural wealth so fast that society must change radically to meet development goals, the UN says in a landmark scientific report.
This report seems to have generated relatively little attention. Probably got drowned out in a week of endless political news.
This Region III Resilience Report is the first such report to come to the Diva’s attention. If the other FEMA Regions also provide such reports, the reader would appreciate knowing about them.
From the HuffPost: White House Rolls Back Regulations Meant To Avoid The Next Deepwater Horizon. The changes are estimated to save the oil industry $824 million over the next decade.
From the Wash Post: Think Biden and Trump are too old for the White House? Take a look around.
By the way, Gilbert White, the subject of the last posting, was active and productive professionally into his 90s.
Recovery Diva 