Each One for US All has combined the reactive and proactive approach to offer a complete service to those affected by a natural disaster, here is the plan.
To provided immediate funding for relief of victims. To supply immediate grants to cover unexpected costs for life’s basic necessities. Funding for food, shelter, security, equipment and work force to allow a cushion that will lessen the immediate effects of a natural disaster. We further dedicate our cause to continue the effort after the tragedy. To provide funding for education and finding solutions. Funding those solutions to alleviate or eliminate recurrence. To further discuss plans in place to reduce the effects of reoccurring disasters and to champion those projects without government intervention. To work with planners to provide resources to help in their efforts to rebuild smarter and faster. To monitor the ongoing events within our country to be proactive in providing our resources. To develop knowledge from past experiences and develop educational tools to help prepare for future events.
Like I mentioned earlier, a reactive approach is necessary, fact is, you can't fully predict what a town will need or the exact damage they may experience so monitoring daily events will give us the ability to reach out, determine the need and provide immediate funding. This gives the town the resources to provide for their citizens without dipping into their own coffers set aside for other things. This funding will always be needed as a reactive solution.
The proactive approach to me is a far more important need and the gap in our system. Towns across the country, much like the town I live in, know that some kind of disaster WILL HAPPEN AGAIN. Whether it's flooding, wildfires, tornadoes, mudslides,,,, pick a disaster, any disaster, there are ways to alleviate the effects. Whether it's to better prepare for the event such as building a new shelter or purchasing more buses to get people to the shelter. Or to build something to prevent the disaster, like a new dam or retaining wall, this will reduce the costs when the disaster happens and more importantly let people get back to the normalcy in their lives faster. In all cases and our ultimate goal will be to eliminate the recurrence.
As of today, there have been over 40 federally declared disasters in our country in 2009. Through FEMA, billions of dollars have been spent on clean-up and rebuilding efforts. FEMA's spending also covers, pre-disaster mitigation programs. These programs deal with prevention but tend to offer property buy-outs for open space. This happened in my town and 2 properties were purchased leaving holes in the neighborhood, one has been turned into a community garden. This approach also took away tax base from the town, leaving the rest of us to pick up the costs. FEMA will also pick up costs to retro-fit existing buildings and elevation of at risk buildings but the process is long. The research I've done with Emergency Managers across the country tells the same story of double and triple work to justify the funding and in some cases after all the work, they are still left without the funding. Three years after our last flood we, as a town, just received funding for 4 more homes along the river. Three years????? Also, in our current economic state and deficit at record levels,,, can we actually expect that the government will be able to provide this funding? Again, my research says no. Spending cuts will be forced on FEMA, leaving them to provide on a reactive basis as a government needs to but will reduce the plan for prevention or at least reduce the spending in that arena.
DD
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