Category Archives: FEMA

Craig Fugate Confirmed as Head of FEMA

We like Craig Fugate as head of FEMA, and was confirmed by the Senate late today after Senator Vitter (R, LA) released his hold. Choice to Head FEMA is Confirmed

(Associated Press via NY Times).

We believe that Mr. Fugate is responsible for the best definition of a “disaster” – an emergency is a bad situation in which responders outnumber sufferers; in a disaster – the responders are outnumber by those in need. In my dealings with him – mostly by email, he’s been friendly, well-informed and unpretentious. He’s got a tough job – let’s hope the Administration lets him do it. Via Disaster Accountability

See also Fugate’s personal Blog, DisastersRUS

State to State comparisons – CERT team numbers by population

Our first experiment at displaying data in this way. NB: ((Nota Bene, or “take note” – Lat.))

  1. This is data reported to FEMA by the states – or directly by local administrators;
  2. We know nothing from this data of size, effectiveness, equipment, capabilities of CERT teams
  3. Other volunteer organizations – volunteer ambulance corps, fire departments, and other groups, like The 3 Steps – wouldn’t be reported here anyway.

With those caveats – based on current FEMA data:


State Population served per team
New Jersey 20,437
Wyoming 29,046
Mississippi 31,726
North Dakota 31,986
Rhode Island 36,477
Maine 36,589
Utah 37,790
South Dakota 39,811
Missouri 41,108
Massachusetts 46,401
Vermont 47,789
Total 31,161
Idaho 55,533
Texas 57,325
New Hampshire 69,254
Oregon 76,479
Kansas 81,647
Iowa 85,373
North Carolina 87,971
Florida 89,030
Kentucky 90,244
Washington 95,124
Connecticut 103,009
Oklahoma 106,392
Montana 106,429
Tennessee 111,940
West Virginia 113,252
Louisiana 116,033
Ohio 118,216
South Carolina 119,127
Michigan 122,827
Arkansas 123,252
Indiana 129,496
Arizona 132,057
Alaska 136,696
California 145,052
Minnesota 157,504
Alabama 159,581
Nebraska 161,325
Virginia 175,275
Georgia 207,495
Colorado 231,501
Maryland 255,379
New Mexico 281,416
Nevada 285,042
Illinois 313,477
Hawaii 427,796
New York 438,585
District of Columbia 588,292
Pennsylvania 592,038
Puerto Rico 657,063
Wisconsin 800,234
Delaware 864,764

Many thanks to Dannny Sanchez and his excellent table-to-html tool, Tableizer.

FEMA Worker Sentenced To Five Years For Identity Theft

Or – How Many Fraud Convictions Does It Take To Prevent Being hired at FEMA?

By Washington Post Staff Writer Del Quentin Wilber, dated 12/6/08:

Judge Imposes 5-Year Term for ‘Lowdown’ Scam,

A former employee of the Federal Emergency Management Agency was sentenced yesterday to more than five years in federal prison for stealing the identities of 200 people, some of them disaster victims.

In April, Robert W. Davis, 44, of Southeast Washington pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Washington to charges of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in a four-year scheme that ended in November 2007. Prosecutors said Davis used the identities to purchase items ranging from diamond watches and other jewelry to steaks and lobsters.

Davis stole identities while working at mortgage companies and as a human resource specialist at FEMA, authorities said. About 30 stolen identities belonged to people trying to get disaster assistance, federal prosecutors said.

– snip –

[Judge] Walton said that while he understood Davis had a difficult childhood, he noted that he had been convicted four previous times of theft and fraud. He also pointed out that Davis wasn’t using the lines of credit just to finance a drug habit. “That wasn’t about drugs,” Walton said. “That was about living good.”

Thanks to Sonya Geiger at the Disaster Accountability Project for spotting this one.

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Artist creates solar/wind powered "emergency respond

(Via Inhabitat) Which may, in fact, exceed FEMA’s exertions – despite the fact that, as Paul Villinski, a New York-based artist has demonstrated, it’s entirely possible to construct livable/usable emergency structures which rely on solar and wind power. From Bridget Steffen at Inhabitat, Solar Powered Mobile Emergency Response Studio:

Better yet, make sure you read the whole piece and see the images – the one above the jump, taken alone, doesn’t do it justice.NB: as of this writing – October 30th – Villinski’s bandwidth limit had been exceeded. Waiting and checking back later will, we think, be worth it.

Villinski – main site.

Emergency Response Studio.

Other coverage.

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Urgent Request to Sign Petition Objecting to FEMA decision – no ice in disasters

SIGN THIS PETITION:

FEMA has decided that it’s not going to deliver ice in disasters, except in narrowly defined “medical” or “life-threatening” circumstances. Ice, of course, is a staple in disasters. The Disaster Accountability Project has coverage of the FEMA decision here

.

And DAP has also organized a petition drive – sign the petition at this link .