FEMA Sheltering and Temporary Essential Power (STEP)

Response; Puerto Rico Department of Housing (PRDOH)

HomePuerto Rico Sheltering and Temporary Essential Power (STEP) Program

About the project

In September 2017, Hurricanes Irma and Maria caused catastrophic and widespread damage to the island of Puerto Rico. Hurricane Maria, a Category 5 storm with 150 mph winds, struck just two weeks after Hurricane Irma and left Puerto Rico with a 100% power outage, nearly 100% loss of telecommunications, and severe damage to the island’s infrastructure. Tens of thousands of homes were damaged or destroyed, creating an immediate need for shelter.

Understand how an IT disaster recovery plan helps local governments protect critical systems, reduce downtime, and maintain essential public services.

Discover the benefits of an after-action review to assess performance, refine strategies, and strengthen your organization’s resilience.

Learn what an incident management team (IMT) is, its roles, types, and how it helps with organized responses to emergencies.

Your knowledge of the complex governmental regulations and equally complex insurance and adjusting issues really helped the county maximize the public assistance that was available after all of these disasters. You delivered what you promised, and we are confident in your ability and the ability of your firm to provide these services fully on a technical and professional level yet be able to translate clearly and concisely the intricate and sometimes subjective FEMA regulations which we could not have done without you.

The State of Alaska…[has] a significant investment in the disaster recovery process for both state and federally declared events…. The collaboration with Tidal Basin in these efforts has been so successful and seamless that in most instances applicants and FEMA staff don’t even realize we have contractors on board unless we tell them. Our interaction with Tidal Basin staff and managers works and feels like true teammates and the result is a faster, more comprehensive delivery of disaster recovery resources to survivors.

Months after the storm passed, the County was still faced with tremendous burdens related to the insurance coverage issues and FEMA and MEMA eligibility issues. Jackson County hired your organization to provide professional services for disaster assistance, remediation, restoration and recovery efforts….Their expertise with governmental regulations, the complex FEMA process and insurance adjustments resulted in our successful claim for over $2 million in additional FEMA Public Assistance funding specifically; in our successful negotiations with our insurance carrier; and in numerous other increases in the values FEMA and MEMA initially designated for County projects. Jackson County will always be mindful of the help we received from you when we needed it most.