THIS IS FEMA

The Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, is an independent agency of the federal government, reporting to the President. Since its founding in 1979, FEMA's mission has been to reduce loss of life and property and protect our nation's critical infrastructure from all types of hazards, through a comprehensive, risk-based emergency management program of Mitigation, Preparedness, Response and Recovery.

THE PEOPLE OF FEMA

There are more than 2,600 full-time employees working at FEMA headquarters in Washington, DC, at regional and area offices across the country, at the Mount Weather Emergency Assistance Center in Virginia, and at the National Emergency Training Center in Maryland. In a major disaster, as many as 4,000 temporary and reserve employees and volunteers may join the response and recovery team.

MITIGATION

Perhaps the most important element of emergency management mitigation is the day-in, day-out effort to reduce disasters' long-term risk to people and property. FEMA's mitigation team works with government and professional groups and the public to reduce the effects of floods, earthquakes, hurricanes and other hazards. FEMA helps by:

• Promoting sound building design and construction practices.
• Providing grants for activities that reduce the impact of natural disasters.|
• Educating the public on what to do through training programs, publications, and seminars.
• Helping local communities --- adopt flood-plain ordinances; relocate homes and businesses away from high risk areas, encouraging property owners to elevate buildings above flood level.
• Creating risk assessment maps to assist local planners with effective community planning.

PREPAREDNESS, TRAINING AND EXERCISES

Survival and quick recovery from disaster depend on pre-planning. FEMA helps the nation prepare for disaster by:

• Funding emergency planning in all 50 states and the U.S. territories.
• Helping states to design and equip emergency operations centers.
• Training emergency professionals and state and local officials at FEMA's Emergency Management Institute.
• Developing courses for state and local delivery.
• Offering training by satellite through the Emergency Education Network (EENET).
• Sponsoring exercises that let people work together under conditions similar to a real disaster.
• Coordinating emergency plans and exercises for nuclear power plants through the radiological emergency preparedness program.
• Helping to minimize the risks posed by chemical stockpile emergencies, hazardous materials transport and storage.

RESPONSE AND RECOVERY

Whenever a disaster strikes with such force that local and state resources are overwhelmed, a state may ask the President for federal assistance. This help is available from a special fund set up by Congress under the Robert T. Stafford Act. In a Presidentially declared disaster, FEMA helps by:

• Assessing the damage.
• Making disaster aid available.
• Managing the process of loan and grant application, approval and disbursement.
• Staffing federal/state disaster field offices.
• Coordinating other federal agencies' involvement under the Federal Response Plan.
• Keeping the public informed through a FEMA published newspaper, The Recovery Times, through Internet postings and through up to 24-hour-a-day broadcasts on The Recovery Channel and the FEMA Radio Network.

FEMA DISASTER AID

FEMA administers two types of Disaster Aid:

• Governmental Assistance:
To state or local governments and certain private non-profit organizations (for repair of infrastructure and public facilities and for debris removal.)

• Individual Assistance:
To citizens (for damage to residences and businesses or personal property losses.)

Federal program assistance includes
• Housing assistance (in the form of rental assistance.)
• Transient accommodations or funding for limited emergency repairs.
• Low interest disaster loans from the Small Business Administration or Farm Service Agency (to cover uninsured property losses.)
• Individual and family grants (For serious disaster-related needs, available to those who are unable to repay a loan.)
• Disaster-related unemployment assistance and legal aid.

For more information:
FEMA Office of Emergency Information & Media Affairs
Tel: (202) 646-4600
Fax: (202) 646-4086
FEMA FAX-on-demand: (202) 646-FEMA (24 hours)
Internet: www.fema.gov