From the WashPost: FEMA sued over using disaster funds to rebuild Puerto Rico’s power grid.
A coalition of advocacy groups is suing the federal government’s disaster response agency, claiming it is making Puerto Rico less resilient to storms and more vulnerable to power outages by rebuilding the island’s old, unreliable power grid without properly assessing the environmental impacts or considering residents’ desire for renewable energy.
From the WashPost: Seas have drastically risen along southern U.S. coast in past decade. Multiple new studies highlight a rate of sea level rise that is ‘unprecedented in at least 120 years’ along the Gulf of Mexico and southeastern U.S. coast.
From Govexec: FEMA Wants to Confront Growing Challenges With More Personnel. The Biden administration is expecting unique challenges this disaster season, and FEMA wants to do more with more.
From Inside Climate News: A New Report Is Out on Hurricane Ian’s Destructive Path. The Numbers Are Horrific. The category 4 storm was the costliest in Florida’s history. Storm surges rose as high as 15 feet and over 20 inches of rain fell on some communities.
From the Conversation: In Turkey, women are feeling the worst aftershocks of the earthquake disaster – this disparity may lead to dwindling trust in government,
“When natural disasters strike, women and girls tend to experience disproportionate challenges and heightened risks.
They are much more likely than men to experience sexual violence and health problems. Women and girls also face greater professional and educational setbacks.
So it should come as no surprise that challenges continue to mount for women in Turkey and Syria following a 7.8 magnitude earthquake on Feb. 6, 2023, that killed more than 50,000 people and displaced 3 million people.”
Come Hell or High Fever Readying the World’s Megacities for Disaster
Authored by: Russell W. Glenn. The book is currently available as a free download.
It is 498 pages and comes from the Australian National Press.
From the HSDL: Hazard Mitigation Assistance Program and Policy Guide Released. This is an updated version of an existing document.
FEMA has released the 2023 Hazard Mitigation Assistance Program and Policy Guide (HMA Guide). This guide details “the policy and procedural requirements of HMA’s programs over the lifecycle of an activity,” and replaces the last comprehensive policy guidance released in February 2015. The HMA Guide outlines the following HMA grant programs:
Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC)
Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA)
Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP)
Hazard Mitigation Grant Program Post Fire (HMGP Post Fire)
Additional information and resources related to the guide can be found at this link, including a Summary of Changes for the 2023 HMA Guide compared to 2015.
From the HSDL: FEMA Updates Its National Risk Index
FEMA has recently updated its National Risk Index. Since 2016, FEMA’s Natural Hazards Risk Assessment Program has collaborated with federal, local, and state government and private industry to help illustrate areas in the U.S. most at risk for 18 natural hazards. The intention of the National Risk Index is to inform users of their relative natural hazard risks and the impacts they could expect to face during and after a disaster.
The accompanying report, National Risk Index: Technical Documentation, details the background, data sources, and processing methodologies of the National Risk Index, as well as the Expected Annual Loss (EAL) for each Census tract or county. “The National Risk Index’s most important and central component, EAL, is a robust measurement that quantifies in dollars the anticipated economic damage resulting from natural hazards each year.”
From the WashPost: Everything is gone’: Loss and destruction in a small Mississippi town.
Poor people, mostly mobile homes, few with personal property insurance, and almost complete destruction of buildings. This is a sad case that will require an unusual amount of federal assistance and outside help for recovery.
Recovery Diva 