News and Media: Disaster 4340

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Press Releases & Fact Sheets

43

The recovery from the 2017 hurricanes, Irma and Maria, is progressing and FEMA is still here assisting the Territory with the efforts. During the next several weeks, FEMA will be posting the “We Are FEMA USVI” series on their FEMA U.S. Virgin Islands Facebook page. The posts will highlight programs/groups, staff and recovery projects in the territory.
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Now is the time to prepare yourself and your household for the upcoming Atlantic hurricane season. During Hurricane Preparedness Week, assess your personal risk, update your family's emergency communications plan, start to replenish your emergency kit, and review your personal and financial documents.
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ST. CROIX, U.S. Virgin Islands – Atlantic hurricane season is four months away, but now is the perfect time to start preparations to harden your home against damage from storms, review and update your family’s emergency plan and replenish your disaster supply kit,
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Before the water began to recede and the winds grew silent in 2017, one phrase stood out above the rest to symbolize recovery – “VI Strong.” This expression not only reflects the spirit of Virgin Islanders but also captures the recovery efforts over the past five years. Building “VI Strong” means using resources to not only rebuild what was lost but building back stronger and more resilient to protect against future disasters.
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-- Soon after hurricanes Irma and Maria swept through the territory in 2017, members of local community groups, faith-based, community-based organizations and nongovernmental organizations collaborated to establish long-term recovery groups on St. Croix, St. John and St. Thomas. Long-term recovery groups are responsible for helping address unmet needs of eligible disaster survivors after they have maximized state and federal funds available to them.
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PDFs, Graphics & Multimedia

View the Disaster Multimedia Toolkit for social media and video content to help communicate about general disaster recovery.

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Mitigation Assessment Team Report: Hurricanes Irma and Maria in the U.S. Virgin Islands (FEMA P-2021)

The MAT was charged with evaluating damage from Hurricanes Irma and Maria, especially for buildings constructed or reconstructed after Hurricane Marilyn (1995), to identify both successful and unsuccessful mitigation techniques. This work involved: assessing the performance of residential, nonresidential, and critical facilities affected by the storms; evaluating the performance of photovoltaic (PV) facilities; investigating the effects of wind speed-up due to the islands’ topography on building performance; and meeting with residents and local officials to better understand what transpired during and after the storms.

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Mitigation Assessment Team Compendium Report: 2017 Hurricane Season (FEMA P-2054)

The 2017 Atlantic hurricane season was extremely active, producing 17 named storms. Six of these storms became major hurricanes (Category 3, 4, or 5), and three ranked in the National Hurricane Center’s (NHC’s) top five hurricanes with the greatest cumulative damage.

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Finding of No Significant Impact for Governor Juan F. Luis North Parking Lot and Ancillary Structures, FEMA-DR-4340-VI, signed 08/14/2023

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Environmental Assessment for Gov. Juan F. Luis North Parking Lot and Ancillary Structures, FEMA-DR-4340-VI, June 2023

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Programmatic Environmental Assessment for U.S. Virgin Islands Housing Actions, December 2022

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Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) for U.S. Virgin Islands Housing Actions, signed 1/20/2023

 A man reclines on a portable hospital bed as the man at his feet tightens the straps holding his legs. A woman stands on his right side holding an IV bag.
Military Medics Transport Local Residents With Special Needs out of St. Croix

Frederiksted, St. Croix--US Military medics prepares a solider with a medical need for a flight on a military plane out of the US Virgin Islands on September 29, 2017.Photo by Jocelyn Augustino/FEMA

 FEMA obligated $9.5 million this month through its Public Assistance Program for repairs to the Oswald Harris Housing Community. A Hazard Mitigation Proposal of $788,967 will include Installation of reinforcement for solar panels, stainless-steel doors,
Housing, Energy and Transportation Project Obligations Spring Recovery Forward

St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, June 2, 2021 – FEMA obligated $9.5 million this month through its Public Assistance Program for repairs to the Oswald Harris Housing Community. A Hazard Mitigation Proposal of $788,967 will include Installation of reinforcement for solar panels, stainless-steel doors, laminated flooring, protective lighting mesh and the addition of epoxy sealant to exterior walls.

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USVI Slope Stabilization Analysis Project

St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands – FEMA has obligated a total of $1.6 million through its Hazard Mitigation Grant Program to the V.I. Department of Public Works for the USVI Slope Stabilization Analysis project. This advance assistance project will identify locations throughout the Territory in need of slope stabilization systems and aligns with the Territorial Hazard Mitigation Plan. FEMA photo.

 A barge with tarpaulin that is covering debris sits in the water with an island in the background.
Barge Set To Sail From St. Thomas

The barge Amelie is loaded with more than 11,000 cubic yards of construction and demolition and marine debris behind the Cancryn debris site at the island's shipping port. It will set sail for Freeport, Texas, where it will be unloaded around Thanksgiving, and then return to the Virgin Islands by mid-December, according to Ceres Environmental and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The marine debris was collected from displaced vessels off St. Thomas and St. John after Hurricanes Irma and Maria. FEMA / Eric Adams