Hurricanes Irma and Maria News Releases

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Hurricanes Irma and Maria News Stories

  • October

    USACE supports storm survivors with safe structures

    Responding to disasters is one of several missions the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is tasked with. Part of answering this call is through specialized teams that go out and conduct infrastructure assessments in disaster areas. "On Aug. 29, the Corps of Engineers and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) deployed an Infrastructure Assessment Planning and Response Team (PRT) management cell to Louisiana," Infrastructure Assessment Action Officer Doug Weber said. "When I first started on the Infrastructure Assessment team, I thought it was all about placarding peoples’ homes for safety, " Mission Specialist Adrienne Murphy said. "But in our last two deployments, we’ve been asked to perform inspections of drinking water systems, wastewater systems, and public facilities like hospitals and fire stations."
  • LA District teams up with California Guard for flood-control exercise

    Partnership was the keyword Oct. 8 as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Los Angeles District teamed up with the California Army National Guard for a flood-control exercise at the Whittier Narrows Dam Basin.
  • District’s rapid response team helps extinguish coalmine fire in Washington state.

    In June, after an unsuccessful attempt by local firefighters to put out a smoldering fire at an abandoned Navy coalmine in Cumberland, Washington, the Office of Surface Mining and Reclamation reached out to the USACE Omaha District’s technical center of expertise rapid response team for assistance.
  • Army Corps Honored by Waterfront Alliance as ‘Heroes of the Harbor’

    Army Corps honored by the Waterfront Alliance for its work and achievements.
  • September

    Blue Roof recipients witness USACE innovation

    Innovating and improving processes are what the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers do, especially when it comes to hurricane recovery operations. So when it came time to respond to a Hurricane like Laura, the Corps came ready to deliver temporary roofing with an upgraded Blue Roof Program.
  • Local Government Liaisons reach the hearts of communities

    Often during disaster response, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Planning and Response Teams such as, temporary emergency power, debris removal and Operation Blue Roof are the Corps activities in the limelight; however, the little-known and little-seen Local Government Liaison, or LGL, national cadre is operating in the background, providing a critical lifeline of communication between Federal Emergency Management Agency, the state, local officials, and the Corps.
  • Corps, Samaritan's Purse go above and beyond for Laura survivor

    "The day I met Mr. Williams, I was looking for his house and drove past it because I didn't see it; all I saw were trees," Roofing Quality Assurance Specialist George Hayes recalled. "Honestly, I wasn't expecting anyone to be home. So many folks evacuated after the storm, I just figured no one was home. As I got closer to the door, I heard his little dog bark. I yelled, "Is anyone home?" and I saw a movement through the window. The door opened, and he drove his wheelchair out onto the front porch. My heart just sank." At that moment, Hayes knew he needed to go above and beyond to help this man.
  • District’s technical center of expertise provides rapid response during emergencies

    With September and October being the peak hurricane months, the Omaha District's rapid response team stands ready to offer disaster relief assistance should the need arise. According the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association the 2020 hurricane season has already set a record by logging 20 storms as of Sept. 14.
  • USACE provides power to hard-hit Louisiana

    Living in the 21st century, most Americans have electricity on demand. When it isn’t working, it usually doesn’t take longer than a day to get it turned back on. But what happens when a storm like Hurricane Laura hits? Close to 200,000 residents living in southwestern Louisiana lost power on Aug. 27. Many of them are still without it, weeks after the storm has come and gone. Delivering power to southwest Louisiana is one of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' top priorities. USACE is installing generators in several critical facilities like water pump stations, sewage lift stations, hospitals, radio towers, and corrections facilities, to name a few. The 23-person team responsible for installing these generators ensured they were in Louisiana before Hurricane Laura even made landfall.
  • Corps of Engineers fully engaged in LA Hurricane recovery efforts

    When Hurricane Laura struck Lake Charles, Louisiana, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Mississippi Valley Division (MVD) response and recovery teams were already in place to execute the critical mission assignments assigned by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Damages sustained in southwestern Louisiana warrant USACE expertise. Mission assignments range from temporary roofing and emergency power installation to supporting the temporary housing mission and conducting infrastructure assessments and providing debris removal technical assistance to the state.

Blue Roof Logo

Operation Blue Roof 1-888-ROOF-BLU (7663-258) is a priority mission managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The purpose of Operation Blue Roof is to provide homeowners in disaster areas with fiber-reinforced sheeting to cover their damaged roofs until arrangements can be made for permanent repairs.

Call centers for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands will be established as communications on the islands improve.


Emergency Operations

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Overview

  • The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is prepared and ready to respond to natural and human-made disasters and overseas contingencies. When disasters occur, USACE teams and other resources are mobilized from across the country to assist our local districts and offices to deliver our response missions.
    • USACE has more than 50 specially-trained response teams supported by emergency contracts to perform a wide range of public works and engineering-related support missions. 
    • USACE uses pre-awarded contracts that can be quickly activated for missions such as debris removal, temporary roofing, commodities distribution, and generator installation.
  • Every year, USACE, as part of the federal government’s unified national response to disasters and emergencies, deploys hundreds of people to provide technical engineering expertise and to promote capacity development at home and abroad. 
    • In 2016, USACE had 1096 personnel deployments in response to one or more of 33 disaster declarations.
      USACE serves as the lead agency to respond with public works and engineering support and to coordinate long-term infrastructure recovery.