FEMA is misunderstood

[Aquawind]

Don't count on them for much or you may have to give it back.....


FEMA wants to clarify mission

Expectations too high in disaster, agency says

By Joan D. LaGuardia
jlaguardia@news-press.com
Published by news-press.com on May 3, 2005

The Federal Emergency Management Agency will continue to aggressively urge all disaster victims to apply for federal grants and loans, regardless of how likely they are to get them.

As of April 19, 1.2 million Floridians registered for FEMA assistance to individual households damaged by 2004 hurricanes. Fewer than half — about 604,000 or 49 percent — were actually eligible for aid.

In the 2005 hurricane season, FEMA will improve its education programs to counter unreasonable expectations of how it can help disaster victims, the head of FEMA said Monday in Orlando.

"The last thing I want FEMA to be criticized for is not helping people," said Michael D. Brown, undersecretary for Homeland Security for Emergency Preparedness and Response.

"Even if you had insurance, I wanted you to register," Brown said.

At a press conference in Orlando Monday, Brown acknowledged that there is a "downside" to urging all victims to register.

FEMA is now asking about 7,000 Florida hurricane victims to give back their federal grants, mostly from routine collections of overpayments and duplication of insurance benefits.

Brown insisted, however, that efforts to recoup FEMA payouts as well as to track down fraud cases in Florida are not out of line with typical disaster recovery efforts.

In most disasters, FEMA recoups about 1 percent of the money it grants, Brown said.

Federal prosecutors are investigating 14 possible fraud cases statewide. Those cases involve less than 1 percent of the funds distributed by FEMA in Florida in 2004, Brown said.

"Unfortunately, about 2 to 3 percent in every disaster will cheat," Brown said.

Brown would rather be criticized for having too many people get aid than for having eligible people miss the opportunity for help, he said.

Better education will help people understand that FEMA is not intended to fully replace what disaster victims lose, he said.

"We are trying to do more outreach, more community relations teams," he said.

Better education efforts will be used this year, including a video available to county emergency response staff.

Statewide, hurricane victims share feelings from annoyance to downright anger because they feel FEMA created the expectation of widespread support by encouraging everyone to register.

FEMA should have "told people up front that they would not get any help and not act like everything would be all right," said Margo Gladney of Cape Coral. She was insured and got nothing from FEMA after going through the registration process.

"It was advertised everywhere. Radio. TVs. The newspaper. Even insurance companies. That's the truth," said James Nagel of Merritt Island.

He hoped FEMA would help with home repairs he still couldn't afford after his insurance settlement. He got about $800 to cover the cost of a generator and fuel.

"After the fact, I learned they did so much for other people. I felt kind of shorted. That doesn't mean only money-wise. I felt that I wasn't fairly heard. I felt more like a number," Nagel said.

Brown said disaster victims often have mistakenly high expectations about what FEMA can do for them, especially after watching the emergency response in a crisis.

"It creates an expectation that FEMA is going to take care of everything," he said, "to completely make folks whole, and that is not what we do."


http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll ... 30427/1075


Paul

[SeaBrz_FL]

Once all of the other Florida members are back here, I can guarantee there will be a LONG thread for outrageous FEMA-worker stories. Can't wait to share my own.