DCMC PARTNERS Mission Assignments and EMAC in Puerto Rico March 29, 2018 DC D CM MC C Partners DCMC
Putting Puerto Rico and Hurricane Maria Into Context DCMC P ARTNERS • Hurricane Maria was the nation’s first truly catastrophic disaster o Never before has the response period lasted as long o It is unprecedented that an entire state population lost power, water, telecommunications and basic services for such extended periods o Entire infrastructure systems were devastated, and their loss caused cascading impacts that plague Puerto Rico to this day o Debris and mountainous terrain made movement nearly impossible o Puerto Rico is an island located over 1,000 miles from the U.S. mainland • Government and first responders were themselves “victims” of the storm • Early estimates are that the per-capita impact of Hurricane Maria was 3+ times the impact of Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana 2
The Need for Mission Assignments and EMAC Support DCMC P ARTNERS • Catastrophic nature of the event • Government was overwhelmed and had its own capacity and capabilities devastated by the storm • Puerto Rico was bankrupt and did not have the financial flexibility or cash-flow to enter into contracts or seek reimbursement after paying their bills o Many vendors would not contract with Puerto Rico o Legal Constraints o PROMESA / Bankruptcy • Lack of on-island resources (materials, equipment, and personnel) • Logistical challenges 3
Mission Assignments Coming to the Rescue…. DCMC P ARTNERS • Mission assignments became a tool to not only obtain resources, but to address fiscal challenges and facilitate response. o Debris o Blue Roof o Repairs to critical governmental facilities o Power Restoration (line repair; generators) o Commodities and Fuel o Medical o Emergency Bridge and Road Repairs o Infrastructure / Site Assessments o Dam repairs and stabilization (Guajataca Dam) • Utilized both for traditional emergency work and to jump- start recovery • Secondary benefit: MA’s brought resources to Puerto Rico that could be left there for longer-term support 4
Puerto Rico Relied on EMAC Heavily Also DCMC P ARTNERS • For similar reasons, EMAC was of critical importance. • EMAC support was utilized heavily as well to support emergency needs – aid was received from 33 States in all o Police and Security o Mobilization of Power Restoration Personnel and Equipment o IMTs o Staff Augmentation • Approximately $1 billion has been spent on EMAC assistance 5
Observations and Challenges with Mission Assignments After Maria DCMC P ARTNERS • Highly effective tool overall to address Puerto Rico’s fiscal and operational challenges • Less State control over process, priorities, and approach • Reduced operational and financial transparency o Logistics / timelines o Operational status o Strategic approach o Planning • Federal agency contracting process delays • Logistics coordination and tracking was a major issue • Challenge securing and moving resources • Transition of responsibility back to Puerto Rico was challenging 6
Observations and Challenges with EMAC After Maria DCMC P ARTNERS • Use of EMAC teams from other states to help manage the process was a huge success • 2-week deployments are not problematic for catastrophic events • Field conditions….or people’s perceptions or concerns about them….made EMAC less helpful and added significant additional burdens on the Puerto Rico • Self-deployment of personnel and resources (with an expectation of EMAC eventually covering the bills) was problematic • Delays in providing documentation for reimbursement • EMAC cannot be used for mitigation or long-term recovery support….a problem for catastrophic events 7
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