EATONTOWN, N.J. — The devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy left survivors and businesses in New Jersey with large-scale recovery needs. In the three years since, the state’s private sector has made significant contributions to strengthen recovery efforts.

Immediately after Sandy struck, Private Sector specialists with FEMA’s External Affairs division deployed to New Jersey to work with chambers of commerce, industry associations, individual companies, colleges and universities, the medical industry and other organizations.

Panini Bay Restaurant in Tuckerton built an innovative elevator for wheel chair accessibility

Response was immediate. Utility companies inserted disaster assistance information in utility bill inserts, reaching 3.3 million customers. The South Jersey Transportation Authority featured registration information on its Vehicle Messaging Systems at toll plazas as well as on its website ticker messaging system, reaching an estimated 2.9 people a month.

Through utility bill inserts, newsletters, signage, advisories and other means, FEMA’s Private Sector specialists successfully distribute some 14 million disaster assistance messages to New Jersey residents.

One fast food chain that requested anonymity handed out disaster assistance messaging along with 7,000 sandwiches they distributed at 32 locations throughout New Jersey. “That’s just one example of how essential the private sector is to a strong recovery effort,” noted Gracia Sczech, who served as Federal Coordinating Officer for FEMA’s Joint Field Office in Lincroft during the early days of the disaster.

Chambers of commerce, associations and businesses shared FEMA’s electronic newsletter, the E-News Update, with their memberships and contacts. This access to recovery information proved invaluable to their members and had far-reaching effects.

FEMA’s Private Sector worked with The New Jersey Association of Realtors to present a series of seminars and question and answer sessions on recovery issues. These events updated and advised the real estate community on issues pertinent to Sandy recovery, including, Flood Mapping, the National Flood Insurance Program, Home Elevation, Business Continuity, Federal and State recovery programs, and grant and loan opportunities.

In all, more than 2,000 realtors received the latest information regarding Sandy recovery. “To have the opportunity to interact directly with FEMA representatives, ask questions and get answers has helped not only members, but their clients as well,” said New Jersey Association of Realtors Chief Executive Officer Jarrod Grasso. “The recovery process in the aftermath of Sandy has not been easy, but getting the correct facts to our members has relieved a great deal of uncertainty related to flood maps, insurance and elevation that so many New Jersey residents felt.”

Two FEMA program areas, Private Sector and the Federal Disaster Recovery Coordination group, facilitated an Insurance Industry Roundtable, forming a public-private partnership that resulted in a series of four meetings to explore how to enhance and expedite the disaster assistance process. A roundtable work group identified issues impeding the process and then developed recommendations that were submitted to President Obama’s Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force.

FEMA’s Mitigation and Private Sector teams man tables at Home Depot’s Preparedness Day

The private sector reached out in more basic ways as well. Sometimes, it was as simple as speaking at a local chamber of commerce meeting or a single business, staffing information tables at business and industry functions or offering work space for businesses displaced by the storm.

Operation Photo Rescue, a nonprofit organization of volunteer photojournalists from around the nation, came to New Jersey to help Sandy survivors restore treasured photos. The organization began helping disaster survivors during the Hurricane Katrina recovery in Louisiana.  Operation Photo Rescue volunteers needed to set up a temporary site close enough for survivors to access their free services.

“Finding a place for us to host our copy run was turning into a major problem as we could not secure a building close enough to where Sandy hit,” recalled Operation Photo Rescue President Margie Hayes.

“We were coming up empty-handed until Chris Spyridon, regional pro sales manager for Home Depot, offered us a space at Home Depot in Seaside Heights.”

Another area in which the private sector played an important role was in the academic arena. FEMA offers a disaster preparation program to elementary schools titled “FEMA for Kids,”  which helps children recover from the stress and uncertainty of the unknown that a disaster can bring by teaching them skills that serve to alleviate that uncertainty, including developing a family communications plan for disasters and determining what items their family should plan to have on hand to prepare for disaster, such as canned food, medications, water and pet supplies.

With the success of FEMA for Kids came a similar prepared program aimed at high school and college-age students titled “Ready, Steady, Strong.” Designed and developed by a FEMACorps team at the NJ Sandy Joint Field Office in Lincroft, Ready, Steady, Strong teaches the same principles as FEMA for Kids at a more sophisticated level, including a tabletop exercise simulating a disaster in which the students practice emergency management skills.

Thousands of students throughout New Jersey participated in the two programs, gaining the attention of the Mayor of Newark, who invited FEMA to present the program in the Newark school system. More than 45,000 elementary and high school age students as well as teachers and administrators participated.

The business of recovery is long-term, and an important part of recovery is preparedness, which not only helps individuals survive a disaster but can help businesses endure as well. FEMA’s Private Sector specialists have traveled throughout the state to help executives and officials understand the need for a business continuity plan to implement in an emergency to ensure the business can survive and continue once the emergency is over. Montclair State University recorded FEMA’s preparedness webinar to share with all of New Jersey’s colleges and universities.

As we mark the third year of Hurricane Sandy Recovery, the work of our Private Sector partners continues to benefit residents and businesses throughout New Jersey.

“We are proud of the contributions that members of New Jersey’s business communities made toward the goal of recovery,” said NJ Sandy Recovery Office Director Christopher Hartnett. “Their efforts have made a difference for thousands of residents and businesses across the state.”

Please be sure to watch the following video-links for two success stories: Partnering for Preparedness:  Jenkinson’s Aquarium Continuity Plan Works at https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/videos/81998#details and Serenity Spa Open for Business at http://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/videos/82055.

You may also enjoy two FEMA links called Ready Steady Strong Visits East Side High School at www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/videos/99359 and First Avenue Elementary School is Prepared for Emergencies at www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/videos/99488.

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.twitter.com/FEMASandy,www.twitter.com/fema, www.facebook.com/FEMASandy, www.facebook.com/fema, www.fema.gov/blog, 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.”