2013 Annual Gathering: Workshop#5B: Storm Chasers - Disaster Response as the New Normal

7/27/2019 2013 Annual Gathering: Workshop#5B: Storm Chasers - Disaster Response as the New Normal

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Disaster Response as the New Normal

CCUSA Annual Gathering

San Francisco, CA

SEPTEMBER 16TH 2013

Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens


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Movie clip


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Why we play a key role in disaster response

105 program sites all over Brooklyn and Queens

Parishes are our primary constituents

Pre-existing relationships with community stakeholders


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I. DonationsA. Challenges

1. Unsolicited donations of unnecessary items2. Adequate space to properly store items3. Transportation of items to needed areas4. Maintaining supply of certain products


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I. DonationsA. Challenges

1. Unsolicited donations of unnecessary items2. Adequate space to properly store items3. Transportation of items to needed areas4. Maintaining supply of products


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I. Donations

B. Response1. Internal resources

a) Communications office posted specific

items needed on the agencys websiteb) Fiscal office kept track of monies being

spent and donated from various

sources.c) Used agency vendors to promptly

supply needed products

ex) food pantry vendors


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I. Donations

B. Response

2. External resourcesa) Connected with local partners

- E.g.: Agency partner provided

transportation to get materials to distribution

sites.b) National partners: CCUSA connected us to

national resources, e.g. AmeriCares andFeed the Children


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I. Donations

C. Lesson Learned To have a supply of basic survival items in non-

flood zones


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II. Communication

A. Challenges1. Informing community of our disaster services and

resources2. Communication between parishes and on-site staff

3. Difficulty in checking up with clients (seniors and

clients with special needs)


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II. Communication

B. Response1. Internal resources

a) Provided updates of relief sites and

services on agency websiteb) Door to door communication with

parishes, residences, etc.c) Utilized staff and volunteers to cover more

groundd) Pastor cell phone numbers


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II. Communication

B. Response

2. External resources

a) Utilized preexisting partners and the media

to increase awareness of the agencys

services

b) Use of social media

e.g. face book, twitter, instagram


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II. Communication

C. Lessons Learned

1. Develop, test, and update contact list where feasible

2. Alternate communication methods

e.g. two way radios

3. Establish a central point of contact outside thepotential disaster area and make pre-established toll

free telephone numbers available for clients.


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III. Volunteers

A. Challenges

1. Unsolicited Volunteers

2. Daily inconsistency of volunteers (quantity, skill set,

reliability)

3. Safety/Liability


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III. Volunteers

B. Response

1. Internal resources

a) Volunteer office oversaw the screening process

and had knowledge of changing volunteerneeds.

b) Staff volunteered their personal time.

c) Attended to safety measures in all volunteer

tasks.


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III. Volunteers

B. Response1. External resources

a) Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD)

b) Local mediac) Contacted local legislative offices for potential

volunteers

d) Connected with other organizations that have

volunteer departments


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III. Volunteers

C. Lessons Learned

1. Create a system of Volunteer Management in

advance of a disaster2. Pre-identify specific volunteer tasks to enable

appropriate assignment of volunteers

3. Pre register volunteers prior to assignment


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Intermediate Response

Restoration Centers

Temporary centers which housed various government agenciesunder one roof

CCBQ provided 43 case managers for 3 of 6 NYC Restoration

Centers in Brooklyn and Queens


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Long-Term Response:

Disaster Case Management

17 DCMs and 2 supervisors help those with unmet needs related

to Sandy

Culturally competent and multilingual (English, French, Spanish,

Creole and Chinese).

Assigned to 10 strategic locations 700 Families served to date


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Long-Term Response:

Disaster Case Management

Project Hope Provides mental health counseling to individualsand groups affected by the disaster

Super Storm Sandy Employment Programfunded by CCUSA

Long-Term Recovery Groups


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CATHOLIC CHARITIES BROOKLYNAND QUEENS

Income Inequality in New York City

Last year, the wealthiest 20 percent of NYC residents made

$391,022 a year on average. The poorest 20 percent made

$9,681.

Bill de Blasio recently called this a tale of two cities.

Gap is slightly smaller in Brooklyn and Queens, but the

disparity is real and it greatly impacts the ability of

different communities to recover from a disaster.

43 percent of the 518,000 households in New York and

New Jersey asking for federal aid after Super Storm Sandy

reported annual incomes of less than $30,000.


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CCBQ focused its immediate response on the coastalneighborhoods of Red Hook, Coney Island and the Rockaway

Peninsula . Each of these areas has a high concentration of poor

residents.


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Why were these communities so severely impacted?

They are by the coast

They have high numbers of undocumented immigrants

They have high numbers of poorly-designed public housing

units

Families had a high rate of debt prior to the storm

They are relatively isolated from resources that exist in othercommunities


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Why is there a concentration of the poor by the coast?

Robert Moses, head of the Mayors Committee on Slum Clearance,

played a major role

New York City started building housing projects on the waterfront in

1950

Land was cheap, few people lived there, and eminent domain couldbe easily asserted


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NYC Public Housing

In coastal areas, the buildings are poorly designed

178,889 apartments in 345 developments

Largest public housing authority in North America

Floodwaters from the storm damaged 402 public housing

buildings with more than 35,000 units in New York City.

Their isolation in Coney Island, Red Hook and the Rockaways

meant that they had very few local resources.


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Immigrants and Sandy

Many undocumented residents live in the 3 areas where

CCBQ focused its response.

A large number of those residents lived in illegal housing units

FEMA, bearing the DHS logo, was often not seen as a safe

place to seek assistance.

Partnering with parishes was key as the church is a trusted

place.


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Other Challenges During Response

Volunteers had a difficult time understanding the needs of

these communities.

Zoo animals being watched

Cultural barriers led to some communities having a difficult

time accessing resources.

Some white communities were resistant to having people

of color come there to access resources


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Myth of Hurricane Sandy as the Great Equalizer

Social Realities:

Pre-existing poverty and inequality in the social structure

Racism and classism that has existed in NYC for decades.


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What are the pre-existing conditions that make it harder for

communities to recover?

High unemployment rate

Poor education

Food insecurity

Lack of documentation for immigrants

High prevalence of illegal housing units

Density of public housing Lack of quality health care

Pre-existing debt

Overall acceptance of the poverty in these communities


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CCBQ has a robust action network that is consistently

working on issues of structural inequality

Here are some things you can do too

Action alerts, meetings, rallies, etc. - engage elected

officials and other power brokers

Join coalitions to organize

Use your agencys influence to push for more equal

opportunities and access for your clients.



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Overarching Lessons Learned

Disaster preparedness cannot focus solely on response and

recovery.

Social inequality is changeable.

Catholic Charities USAs Campaign to Reduce Poverty in

America

Our New Normal


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CCUSA: A Vital Resource

Office of Disaster Operations

- Emergency Kit

- Connection to material resources

- Connection to funding opportunities

Applied Institute for Disaster Excellence


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Group Work

1. Which of your internal assets might be put to use in the event

of an emergency/disaster?2. What social justice issue will you address now in order to

mitigate the effects of a disaster?

3. What one Action step can you take to improve your ability torespond to a disaster?


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Documents

2013 Annual Gathering: Workshop#5B: Storm Chasers - Disaster Response as the New Normal