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Hurricane Florence is a big test for FEMA. Is it ready?

Sep 11, 2018
Hurricane Florence is expected to hit several states along the Eastern Seaboard, including North and South Carolina, and Virginia, on Thursday. More than a million people have been ordered to evacuate. Federal agencies are scrambling to coordinate the relief supplies that are probably needed in the days ahead. This will be the Federal Emergency Management […]
 Contractors apply a FEMA tarp to a home damaged by Hurricane Maria and without electricity on Dec. 20, 2017 in Morovis, Puerto Rico. 
Mario Tama/Getty Images

It’s official: FEMA wasn’t equipped to handle the devastation of Hurricane Maria

Sep 5, 2018
A new report by the Government Accounting Office doesn’t bode well for future disaster relief.
 A flooded street is seen as people deal with the aftermath of Hurricane Maria on Sept. 25, 2017 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. 
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Thousands of families displaced by Hurricane Maria are living in hotels. The FEMA program that pays for that is about to end

Jun 15, 2018
Since Hurricane Maria ravaged Puerto Rico in September 2017, thousands of people have fled the island to come to the mainland. Many of them — some 1,600 families — have been staying at hotels paid for by the Transitional Shelter Assistance program from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. But the program will expire at the end of […]

For older Puerto Ricans, limited housing is a barrier to mainland life post-Hurricane Maria

Jun 8, 2018
Older evacuees in FEMA's transitional shelter program have special concerns when seeking affordable housing on the mainland.
A flag of Puerto Rico is seen on a damaged house in Yabucoa, in eastern Puerto Rico, on Sept. 28, 2017.
HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP/Getty Images

Florida's affordable housing shortage is a roadblock for Hurricane Maria evacuees

May 10, 2018
Puerto Ricans in FEMA's transitional shelter program worry about where they'll go when the program ends June 30.
Activists rally in support of Puerto Rican families displaced by Hurricane Maria on the steps of New York City Hall in April.
Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Floridians wait for help and repairs after Irma

Dec 21, 2017
Low unemployment and a shortage of construction workers make for long waits to get storm repairs done.
The remains of a home destroyed by Hurricane Irma in Goodland, Florida, where the storm made landfall.
Mitchell Hartman/Marketplace

Florida's uneven recovery from Hurricane Irma

Dec 21, 2017
Low-income communities face a long road ahead while in more affluent areas, homeowners can rely on insurance payouts to rebuild.

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Disaster recovery starts with temporary housing, but many Texans remain displaced

Dec 13, 2017
Rockport residents are living in temporary housing miles away, hurting the city's workforce and tax base.
Hotel rooms are few and far between in Rockport, Texas. Many people who received FEMA money for housing are using it to rent homes or hotel rooms in Corpus Christi, 30 miles away.
Andy Uhler/Marketplace

Harvey knocked out 80 percent of buildings in Aransas County, Texas, leaving little post-disaster housing

Dec 7, 2017
FEMA's bringing in manufactured units and recreational vehicles for temporary homes.
Rene Cartini and her husband, Bo, just moved into their FEMA manufactured housing unit last week. They plan to stay in it until they finish rebuilding their home.
Andy Uhler/Marketplace

The business of disaster: How does the U.S. spend relief money?

Dec 1, 2017
A guide to when the Federal Emergency Management Agency get involved and the rules governing how its funds are spent.
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) officials help people with questions at the George R. Brown Convention Center which was a shelter for evacuees from Hurricane Harvey, in Houston on September 2, 2017.
MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images