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    Lunch with Heritage Online Chat on the Role of FEMA

    With earthquakes and Hurricane Irene ripping through the East Coast last week, the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) was tested. How well did they do? Will more funding better the response? Click here to join the chat! We are joined by Heritage Fellow Matt Mayer, and he is taking your questions about … More

    Morning Bell: Lessons from Hurricane Irene

    Without question, Hurricane Irene struck a major blow to the United States’ East Coast over the weekend. At least 24 people have died, hundreds of thousands remain without power across the mid-Atlantic, and the estimates of direct costs of damage are in the range of billions of dollars. Our thoughts are … More

    Cantor Demands Common-Sense Spending Cuts in Exchange for More FEMA Aid

    Liberals are busy trying to drum up controversy over Representative Eric Cantor’s (R–VA) calls for spending cuts in exchange for more aid to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Cantor is spot on, and we are thrilled to see someone finally trying to curb FEMA’s growth. Hurricane Irene provides Cantor … More

    Twisting in the Wind: Tornado 101

    As Hurricane Irene heads toward the East Coast of the United States, we also have to worry about tornadoes. Tornadoes often form as a result of hurricanes. Tornado conditions can be predicted, but actual storms cannot. The National Weather Service issues tornado watches (a tornado is possible) and warnings (a … More

    It Could Get Worse: Floods 101

    We’ve discussed earthquakes and Hurricane Irene bearing down on the East Coast, but it doesn’t stop there. One disaster that frequently accompanies the storm surge created by hurricanes and the accompanying heavy rains is floods. A flood occurs when water inundates or overflows land that is normally dry. This definition … More

    Morning Bell: When Catastrophe Strikes

    Yesterday at 1:51 p.m. Eastern Time, a 5.8-magnitude earthquake struck near a small town outside Washington, D.C., the strongest such tremor in 67 years. The geological event, which affected the eastern third of the United States, sent thousands of workers in our nation’s capital (and in New York City) scurrying … More

    Breaking Down the Urban Area Security Initiative

    A recent report by the National Urban Area Initiative Association attempts to demonstrate that the Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) grant program, created in 2003, is an effective homeland security program. Administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the UASI program allocates grant funding to help high-risk, high-density urban … More

    Hurricane 101

    Forget the economic news, the fighting in Libya, and the American Idol summer tour and pay attention to the weather report. Hurricane Irene is wending its way across the Caribbean and heading for the East Coast of the United States, where it may make landfall along the Carolinas. When the … More

    Obama’s FEMA Breaks Disaster Declaration Record

    On August 8, President Barack Obama’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) issued a disaster declaration for flooding in Utah. With that declaration, FEMA hit 158 declarations in 2011 and in so doing surpassed the 15-year record of 157 declarations, set in 1996 by President Bill Clinton’s FEMA, led by James … More

    Another Federal Program Is Not the Answer to Deal with Natural Disasters

    It is heartbreaking to see the destroyed homes, scattered possessions, and lives shattered by recent tornadoes in Alabama, Missouri and elsewhere. Many have lost loved ones and businesses while large parts of communities have been tragically leveled. Yet creating a new federal program would not be a worthy response to … More