WASHINGTON -- FEMA is leaning forward with our federal, state, local and tribal partners to mobilize teams and supplies to support a state managed, locally executed response to impacts from Hurricane Delta. President Donald J. Trump approved the emergency declaration for all 64 parishes in Louisiana. The declaration authorizes FEMA to provide emergency protective measures, including direct federal assistance for 41 parishes under the Public Assistance Program. Additionally, FEMA is authorized to provide emergency protective measures limited to direct federal assistance to 23 parishes under the Public Assistance Program. Additional emergency declaration requests from the governors of Alabama and Mississippi are under review.
Commodities
FEMA has pre-staged over 5 million meals, more than 4 million liters of bottled water and 45 generators near the expected areas of Hurricane Delta impacts. Additional staged commodities available to each affected state based on need and requests to FEMA include blankets, tarps, blue roof sheeting and cots. Shuttle drivers and empty trailers are onsite where these commodities are staged and ready to move these assets to fulfill state requests.
Personnel
As of today, 261 FEMA responders, including Incident Management Assistance Teams, have been deployed in support of Hurricane Delta. Mobile Emergency Operations Vehicles are standing by to provide emergency communication capabilities for federal resources, if needed. Six Urban Search and Rescue Teams and an Incident Support Management Team have also deployed to the area ahead of the storm. Louisiana and Mississippi National Guard are activated and stand by to assist, if needed, and two Disaster Medical Assistance Teams are on standby in Dallas.
Additional personnel from the federal government, including the Department of Defense, Department of Transportation, Health and Human Services, Department of Energy, DHS Cybersecurity Infrastructure and Security Agency and Army Corps of Engineers have been mission assigned to provide support to impacted states and tribes, as needed.
Gulf Residents
Anyone in the forecast path of the storm should complete final preparations as soon as possible. Every storm is different, so even if you have experienced a hurricane, or been under a hurricane warning this year, it’s important to monitor your local news for updates and directions provided by local officials -- and heed local evacuation orders. FEMA adapted its plans to the realities of responding during the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure we can serve Americans while protecting their safety and that of FEMA employees.
State and local officials will have the most up-to-date information on evacuation orders and shelter locations. Residents in Louisiana should call 2-1-1 for evacuation, sheltering and resources for immediate needs. The American Red Cross is prepared to shelter and support families. For assistance, call 3-1-1 or visit the website. Four shelters in Alabama, 72 shelters in Louisiana and 12 shelters in Mississippi are on standby to support evacuated residents.
Hurricane Laura and Sally survivors can still register for federal assistance by visiting disasterassistance.gov, by calling 800-621-3362 (TTY 800-462-7585) or through the FEMA mobile app.
FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program will cover and reimburse policy holders up to $1,000 for certain actions taken to minimize damage to your home and belongings before a flood. Make sure to save your receipts for any of these expenses. Flood loss avoidance eligible expenses include:
- Sandbags.
- Water pumps.
- Building a temporary levee.
- Moving and storage expenses for personal belongings.
- Lumber and plastic sheeting.
- Labor costs for loss avoidance work.
Responding During COVID-19
While some aspects of program delivery may look different this year, our commitment to helping people before, during and after disaster remains our full focus, and we are ready to deliver on our mission.
We will continue to work with our state, tribal and local partners as they plan for execution of evacuation and sheltering operations in a COVID-19 environment. Finding shelter is critical in times of disaster. Shelter outside of the hazard area could include staying with family or friends, seeking a hotel room or staying in a mass shelter. FEMA, other federal agencies and the American Red Cross have modified policies and planning and have taken actions to ensure the federal government can respond to any disaster during our continued coronavirus response efforts.
In alignment with FEMA’s Pandemic Operational Guidance, FEMA is leveraging technology to deliver the agency’s programs at the highest level possible, while preserving our workforce and survivors. These methods include virtual damage assessments and inspections for FEMA Individual Assistance and Public Assistance programs, as well as National Flood Insurance Program claims.
In advance of hurricane and wildfire season, FEMA expanded the capacity of its National Response Coordination Center, response centers around the country, and trained additional staff to be postured to respond to multiple on-going incidents.