FEMA allocates more than $1M to repair 3 Puerto Rico Emergency Management Offices
The repairs to better respond to disasters will benefit more than 45,000 residents in Fajardo, Vieques and Maricao.
More than 45,000 residents of Fajardo, Vieques and Maricao, Puerto Rico, will benefit from the repairs planned for their Municipal Offices for Emergency Management (OMME, in Spanish), thanks to an obligation of more than $1 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
“Emergency management offices are vital to save lives and property in emergency and disaster scenarios. As Joint Recovery Office for the agency, we are aware that responders must have optimal facilities to deploy support and resources during times of urgency and we are committed to repairing them,” said federal disaster recovery coordinator José G. Baquero.
In Fajardo, the OMME is now in the final construction phase after receiving an allocation of more than $644,000. The office has a team of 27 employees, volunteers, paramedics and rescuers.
Their duties during emergencies include rescuing and transporting people to shelters, collaborating with the Municipal Public Works Department in the removal of vegetative material, and conducting mitigation work such as cleaning channels and streams. They also offer community services such as training and talks on hurricane season preparedness.
Some of the repairs at this OMME include waterproofing the roof, replacing the emergency exit doors, acoustic ceiling tiles, a concrete retaining wall, the metal fence and air conditioners. Certain office contents, such as projectors, cabinets and desks, will also be replaced.
“The reconstruction and all repairs are of the utmost importance, as all warehouses, materials, equipment and emergency management personnel are located there, given that this is the office of assistance for citizens, specifically to help during disasters and emergencies,” said Mabel Cosme-Nieves, director of the Fajardo Municipal Recovery Programs.
In Maricao, the OMME, which was established in the 1990s, has 12 employees, including paramedics and rescuers. This office received nearly $15,000 to repair the roof, drains and leaks, as well as to replace the steel antenna of the radio transmitter, a metal fence and some electrical connections.
“Having the OMME repaired is crucial since optimal facilities ensure the safety of the employees and allow them to provide better service,” which includes food and water delivery, Director Luis Méndez-Sanabria said.
Another facility that received federal funds is the OMME at the island-municipality of Vieques, which has eight employees and nine volunteers, including radio operators, rescuers, ambulance operators and a paramedic.
With nearly $400,000 in obligations, windows, doors, the air conditioning system, copper water pipes, light fixtures, metal roofs and the bathroom will be replaced, among other work.
Risk mitigation measures have also been funded to prepare the facilities and make them more resistant to future disasters.
The Fajardo office received more than $418,000 to install a roof insulation coating system, install an anchoring system for the air conditioning units and replace several doors with storm-resistant ones.
The Vieques office was allocated more than $6,500 to replace wooden doors with aluminum ones and reinforce bathrooms, floors and ceilings to prevent future water damage.
Manuel A. Laboy-Rivera, executive director of Puerto Rico’s Central Office for Recovery, Reconstruction and Resiliency (COR3), emphasized the “vital role” of the emergency management offices in safeguarding people during emergencies.
“These funds have allowed us to address the infrastructure needs of these centers in Fajardo, Vieques and Maricao, among others, for the benefit of the people. At COR3, we worked as a team with the municipalities and FEMA to promote these developments, for which funds were disbursed through the Working Capital Advance pilot program,” Laboy-Rivera said.
FEMA said that it has obligated nearly $34 billion for more than 11,000 recovery projects in Puerto Rico in the aftermath of Hurricane María.
