FEMA’s Pacific Northwest Region wishes you #SafeTravels for the holidays

SEATTLE, Wash. – With so many people on the move for the holidays, FEMA’s regional office in the Pacific Northwest is running two week-long social media campaigns to encourage holiday travelers to stay safe Nov. 22 – 28, and Dec. 20 – 26. The campaign has tips for families, pet owners, smartphone users, and people traveling domestically by car and plane, and internationally.  

Here are three tips from the campaign:

  • Pack a small emergency kit for your suitcase. Batteries, a flashlight, a portable radio and USB power bank are good items to start with.
  • Download FEMA’s app, which lets you receive with weather alerts for up to five locations – set one for your holiday destination to stay informed.
  • Use STEP, the Department of State’s the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program if you’re traveling abroad. This will help the U.S. Embassy contact you in an emergency in the event of a natural disaster, civil unrest or family emergency.

This campaign a combined effort with partners in Alaska, British Columbia, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. You can get these tips from FEMA’s Twitter account @FEMARegion10 and Facebook page, and by watching the hashtag #SmartTravels.

More:

FEMA’s Pacific Northwest Region wishes you #SafeTravels for the holidays

Give Your Loved Ones The Gift Of Emergency Preparedness

TRENTON, N.J. — With the holidays fast approaching, New Jersey residents might want to consider giving gifts that will help protect their family members and friends during a future emergency. Supplies for an emergency preparedness kit can make unique — and potentially life-saving — holiday gifts.

Excellent emergency preparedness gifts include:

  • Battery-powered or hand-crank radio and a NOAA Weather Radio with tone alert.
  • A quality flashlight and extra batteries.
  • Solar-powered cell phone charger.
  • Smoke detector and/or carbon monoxide detectors.
  • First aid kit.
  • Fire extinguisher and fire escape ladder.
  • Enrollment in a CPR or first aid class.
  • Books, coloring books, crayons and board games for the kids, in case the power goes out.
  • Personal hygiene comfort kit, including shampoo, body wash, wash cloth, hairbrush, comb, toothbrush, toothpaste and deodorant.
  • A waterproof pouch or backpack containing any of the above items, or with such things as a rain poncho, moist towelettes, work gloves, batteries, duct tape, whistle, food bars, etc.

Holiday shoppers might also consider giving a winter car kit, equipped with a shovel, ice scraper, emergency flares, fluorescent distress flags and jumper cables. For animal lovers, a pet disaster kit with emergency food, bottled water, toys and a leash is also a good gift.

The New Jersey Office of Emergency Management and the Federal Emergency Management Agency urge Garden State residents to give at least one of these practical gifts – either as a present under the  tree or as a stocking stuffer. It might just save the life of a friend or family member. For more information, preparedness tips or other gift ideas, visit www.Ready.gov.

FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.

Follow FEMA online at www.fema.gov/blog, www.twitter.com/fema, www.facebook.com/fema, and www.youtube.com/fema. Also, follow Administrator Craig Fugate’s activities at www.twitter.com/craigatfema. 

The social media links provided are for reference only. FEMA does not endorse any non-government websites, companies or applications.

Visit site – 

Give Your Loved Ones The Gift Of Emergency Preparedness

Governor Cuomo Announces FEMA Extends Transitional Sheltering Assistance Program in NY for an Additional Four Weeks

New York – Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo today announced that the Federal Emergency Management Agency, at the request of the state of New York, has approved a four-week extension to the Transitional Sheltering Assistance program, which allows eligible survivors from Hurricane Sandy, who cannot return to their homes, to stay in participating hotels or motels.

The new extension will allow applicants to remain in participating hotels during the holiday season. FEMA will call applicants eligible for the extension to notify them of the extended four-week period and the checkout date of Jan. 12, 2013.   

“This much-needed extension will allow families who lost everything in Hurricane Sandy to have a place to stay throughout the holiday season,” Governor Cuomo said. “We will continue to work together with city and federal partners to help those displaced by this devastating storm find housing solutions.”

This is a short-term program that places families in hotels in areas with significant rental shortages. Families can stay in area hotels for a short time while they work toward a housing plan.

“Our top priority is to help get people into rental units and longer term housing as fast as we can,” said FEMA’s Federal Coordinating Officer Michael F. Byrne. “We recognize that the holidays can be an emotional time for disaster survivors and this extension will provide immediate shelter through the season.”

To be eligible for TSA, survivors must first apply for federal assistance through FEMA by:

Registering online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov; 

Registering via smartphone or tablet by using the FEMA app or going to m.fema.gov; or

Registering by calling 800-621-FEMA (3362) (TTY 800-462-7585). For 711 or Video Relay Service (VRS), call 800-621-3362.

For more information on New York’s disaster recovery, visit www.fema.gov/SandyNY, www.twitter.com/FEMASandy, www.facebook.com/FEMASandy and www.fema.gov/blog.

Originally posted here:  

Governor Cuomo Announces FEMA Extends Transitional Sheltering Assistance Program in NY for an Additional Four Weeks

Tune in to a Weather Radio for the Holidays

WINDSOR, Conn. — With the holidays approaching, shoppers may want to consider a gift that can make a difference for the whole family — a weather radio.

Weather radios transmit alerts of severe weather and dangerous conditions. They broadcast National Weather Service forecasts, severe weather warnings and watches on impending natural hazards 24 hours a day over the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration radio network. Messages are also available in Spanish.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency recommends that consumers purchase a weather radio developed by NOAA and the Consumer Electronics Association. Radios with the Public Alert logo meet certain technical standards.

Weather radios are available at electronics stores and online at prices ranging from $20 to $200. They can be portable or desktop models. NOAA recommends the following features:

A special alarm tone to alert you to severe weather even if the audio is off;

  • Specific Alert Message Encoding to allow you to choose alerts for your geographic area only;
  • The ability to select certain types of events and block others;
  • A hand crank, battery or solar-powered radio that will operate during electrical outages;
  • National Weather Service frequency tuning; and
  • External or wireless output for people who are deaf, hard of hearing or blind, allowing connection to an alarm or other attention-getting device, such as a personal computer or text printer.

More information is available online at www.nws.noaa.gov/nwr. The link has a list of frequencies used for NWS weather alerts.

FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.

Link – 

Tune in to a Weather Radio for the Holidays

Use FEMA Disaster Funds Wisely

WINDSOR, Conn. – As recovery from Hurricane Sandy progresses, survivors are receiving grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help pay for getting their lives back together.

“It is important for survivors to use this money for their recovery,” said Federal Coordinating Officer Albert Lewis, who is in charge of the FEMA recovery effort in Connecticut.  “With the holidays approaching, don’t be tempted to use some of this money in ways it is not intended to be used. Don’t slow down your recovery; use this money wisely.”

Money from FEMA for housing or other needs assistance must be used for rent, home repair, personal property or other disaster-related expenses.

Disaster officials caution survivors who have received grants that FEMA can and does look at a survivor’s use of grant funds through audits, so it is essential all receipts for rent, materials, labor, etc., be kept in a safe place.

Survivors can register online anytime day or night at www.DisasterAssistance.gov, or with a smartphone or web-enabled device at m.fema.gov. Survivors can also register by phone anytime by calling FEMA at 800-621-3362. The TTY number is 800-462-7585. Multilingual operators are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The deadline to register is Dec. 31, 2012.

Registering for disaster assistance with other agencies or organizations does not register survivors for FEMA disaster assistance. Having FEMA flood insurance does not register policyholders for disaster assistance; flood insurance claims are handled separately.

Disaster recovery assistance is available without regard to race, color, religion, nationality, sex, age, disability, English proficiency or economic status. If you or someone you know has been discriminated against, call FEMA toll-free at 800-621- 3362. For TTY, call 800-462-7585.

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is the federal government’s primary source of money for the long-term rebuilding of disaster-damaged private property. SBA helps homeowners, renters, businesses of all sizes, and private nonprofit organizations fund repairs or rebuilding efforts and covers the cost of replacing lost or disaster-damaged personal property. These disaster loans cover losses not fully compensated by insurance or other recoveries and do not duplicate benefits of other agencies or organizations.

FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.

Visit source: 

Use FEMA Disaster Funds Wisely