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NARRATOR: In the United States, major disasters and emergency
events disrupt the lives of millions, resulting in lost
homes, jobs, and other essential resources.
To each survivor, the disaster can be the worst experience
of their life.
As the nation's lead federal agency in supporting disaster
recovery efforts, FEMA provides services to assist survivors
on the road to recovery through its Individual
Assistance programs.
When a disaster occurs, and upon the request of a governor,
the President may issue a federal disaster declaration
for that state.
The declaration will define the geographical areas included
in the declaration, as well as the types of federal assistance
available, including Individual
Assistance programs.
Individual Assistance is that direct connection to the
homeowner, to the individual that is affected by the
disaster, whereas in the public assistance side we're working
more directly with the state and, for example, repairing
infrastructure, roads, bridges.
NARRATOR: This video focuses on three Individual Assistance
programs for which FEMA has external partners or
interagency agreements--
Disaster Unemployment Assistance,
Disaster Legal Services,
and Crisis Counseling Training
and Assistance Programs.
With its key partners, FEMA is
able to offer survivors a wide
range of services administered
by experts for the best
possible assistance.
The Disaster Unemployment Assistance program, known also
by its acronym DUA, provides temporary benefits to
individuals whose employment or self-employment has been lost or
interrupted as a direct result of a major disaster and who are
ineligible for regular unemployment insurance.
FEMA did give the authority to the Secretary of Labor to
administer the DUA program.
The state unemployment insurance agencies administers the program
on behalf of the U.S. Department of Labor because they have
the infrastructure in place.
NARRATOR: Farmers, small business owners,
the self-employed, and others
may be unable to work or acquire unemployment benefits.
It's just there to provide, you know, a temporary financial
assistance to a certain extent.
NARRATOR: In the interagency agreement, FEMA funds
the payment of benefits and reimburses administrative costs.
The Department of Labor provides program oversight.
DUA is administered by State Unemployment Insurance agencies
on behalf of the Federal Government.
To be eligible for DUA, individuals must meet certain
conditions, which are listed in the DUA program
information materials.
There are specific eligibility requirements that an individual
must meet in order to qualify for Disaster
Unemployment Assistance.
First of all, they have to be unemployed due to the disaster.
They have to not be eligible for any other federal or state
unemployment insurance,
and they also have to be able and available, which means they
have to be willing to work if a job is available.
NARRATOR: In the event of a federally declared disaster,
the affected state will publish an announcement
about the availability of Disaster
Unemployment Assistance.
Disaster Survivors have 30 days from the date of the state
announcement to apply for Disaster Unemployment
Assistance, and benefits can be paid up to 26 weeks.
The state unemployment insurance agency provides the application
information and eligibility requirements.
The program also provides a wide array of re-employment
services--such as various training programs, job openings,
and job counseling-- free of charge.
FEMA's Disaster Unemployment Assistance partnership with the
Department of Labor ensures that an individual who has lost
employment due to a disaster is able to get back on their feet.
There are so many values to the Disaster Legal Services program.
First and foremost is that it provides free legal services to
disaster survivors which allows them to get professional advice
and consultation and allows them to focus their energy
and resources on recovery.
NARRATOR: As a partnership with the American Bar Association
Young Lawyers Division, the program provides free legal
help to disaster survivors who have insufficient resources to
obtain adequate legal services.
The legal matters have to be directly arising from
the disaster and cannot be
fee generated cases.
It allows them to help disaster survivors really focus on their
recovery instead of having angst over legal issues that they
never thought that they would have to deal with,
and in particularly in a stressful time period, to know
that they can go and talk with a professional about their legal
issues and that isn't going to cost them really helps them
on the road to recovery.
NARRATOR: Lawyers answer questions on almost any legal
issue that arises from the disaster, and all information
provided through the DLS program is completely confidential.
Assistance typically includes help with insurance claims
for doctor and hospital bills, loss of property,
and loss of life;
drawing up new wills
and other legal papers
lost in the disaster;
preparing powers of attorney;
help with home repair contracts;
providing advice on problems
with landlords or tenants;
and disaster-related
disability assistance.
When federal assistance is authorized, the declaration will
define communities where Individual Assistance will
be available.
FEMA and representatives from the American Bar Association
Young Lawyers Division will evaluate the need for DLS.
If so, FEMA will contact the assigned
Young Lawyers Division District Representative to implement
the program.
They coordinate with local pro-bono attorneys to establish
a toll-free hotline that is promoted during the disaster.
They obtain the volunteers for the program.
They set up the hotlines.
They train volunteers, and they maintain
representatives in every state to be able
to quickly implement the program.
NARRATOR: All calls made to the hotline are confidential and are
forwarded to attorneys who can provide
over-the-phone assistance.
When needed, callers will be referred to an attorney who will
provide representation free of charge.
In some disasters when conditions permit, volunteer
attorneys will staff Disaster Recovery Centers, which allow
individuals to meet with an attorney face to face.
The Disaster Legal Service program illustrates
FEMA's mission--
to give needed assistance to those recovering from
a disaster.
I think one of the strengths of America is the fact that
in times of need, we all pull together to help each other,
and this is the way that attorneys can help do that.
They may not be good at helping re-shingle a roof, but they can
certainly look over a contract and give someone advice on it.
NARRATOR: For more than 30 years, all levels of government
emergency management officials
have partnered with local
behavioral health providers to
help disaster survivors recover
from the effects of a disaster
through Crisis Counseling
Training and Assistance
Programs, or CCP.
CCP provides short-term behavioral health support when
disaster response needs exceed the state's capacity.
This is possible through an interagency agreement with the
Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse Mental
Health Service Administration, or SAMHSA.
SAMHSA and FEMA have an interagency agreement
relationship that binds our services.
SAMSHA is the avenue that FEMA uses to provide disaster
behavioral health services.
NARRATOR: In CCP, counselors take services into the
communities rather than waiting for survivors to seek them,
often meeting in survivors' homes, shelters, temporary
living sites, and churches.
We're face-to-face. We're door-to-door.
We're talking to individuals. We're talking to groups.
We're talking to families within the communities.
NARRATOR: The CCP seeks to empower survivors through
educating them about disaster reactions, teaching them coping
skills, assessing them for individual needs, and linking
them to appropriate community resources.
The model is based on the premise
that people are resilient.
And so after disaster, crisis counselors work with communities
through psycho-educational materials and to give people the
opportunity to voice what has happened and to help them to
understand their reaction is normal to a disaster and to help
them develop some coping mechanisms to deal with what
they've experienced.
NARRATOR: The CCP consists of two grant programs.
the Immediate Services Program, also referred to as the ISP,
provides funding for up to 60 days after
the disaster declaration.
For disasters requiring the continuation of services
beyond the ISP, the Regular Services Program,
or the RSP, is available
and offers funding for up
to nine additional months.
FEMA provides funds to SAMHSA, whose professionals have
expertise in mental health services.
SAMHSA's partnerships and training programs for state
mental health agencies establish the infrastructure for CCP
at the local level.
State, Tribal, and Territorial governments provide
crisis-counseling services through contracts with local
mental health providers that are familiar with the communities
affected by the disaster.
One of the things that we promote is the hiring from
within the community, primarily because those people within the
community know their community.
They are part of that community.
They have pride in that community, so they want to see
the community succeed.
NARRATOR: The CCP is anonymous and does not collect identifying
information or keep records or files.
We want to make sure that the community understands that we
understand their need.
We are empathic, and we want to support them.
NARRATOR: Requests can be made for populations that may
require accommodations.
For example, if the State identifies a community of people
who are deaf or hard-of-hearing, they can request training
for the crisis counselors on how to reach out to that population
and to include a sign language interpreter.
ROBINSON: The Crisis Counselors are trained to assess
every situation.
If they enter a home where there is an individual or group
of individuals with functional access needs, the crisis
counselors are trained and armed with an arsenal of resources.
NARRATOR: Marketing, or "branding,"
for the crisis-counseling program
is an important component.
This branding helps identify the crisis counselors
in the community as
recovery outreach workers.
An example of branding used
in the state of Texas during
Hurricane Ike was Texas
P.R.I.D.E., standing for People
Recovering In-spite
of Devastating Events.
In 2009, the U.S. Territory American Samoa was devastated by
an unprecedented earthquake and tsunami.
What was at first a huge hit to the local economy became
an opportunity.
It really totally wiped out a fishery which employed the
lion's share of the people within that community.
We were able to go in and provide training, which is a lot
of what we do, to these fishery workers who then were able to,
in turn, go into their communities and provide support,
comfort, skills for the survivors.
NARRATOR: On May 22, 2011, a Category 5 tornado destroyed
a large section of Joplin, Missouri.
The large-scale destruction to the community necessitated
long-term community mental health assistance
led successfully by "Healing Joplin."
I think the most rewarding thing
about the crisis counseling
program is the fact that the
community is so enthralled
with them and has kind of adopted them as their own.
It helps the community in terms of giving jobs, but it also
makes people feel more comfortable that people
on that team grew up here, understand this,
are survivors of the tornado, as well.
So we are very grateful that
SAMHSA and FEMA have sponsored
this program to be available
in the community and to assist
people not just for the short term, the first 60 days,
but for the long term.
NARRATOR: CCP provides support, education, and linkage to needed
community resources.
I think a successful program is basically a program that
provides the outreach to those that were impacted by this
disaster, were able to be helped by this program and able to
return to their lives and provide for their families
and so forth.
The partnership that we have with FEMA is like none other.
One of the things that we do is to try to help the survivors
gain some type of hope.
NARRATOR: FEMA and its partners in Individual Assistance are
committed to meeting the unique needs of all survivors who need
help after a disaster.
I think that the Human Services Programs are so vitally
important because there aren't a lot of places for folks to go
in the most dire time of need
and these really make a connection with individuals to
provide different things,
and what I think is really neat about these programs is,
they may have different statutory authorities,
but there's a clear relationship in supporting
the disaster survivor, and it's really all built
around the partnership between FEMA and other federal agencies
and state and local partners the private sector,
faith-based organizations.
They all come into play in assisting
the disaster survivor.
NARRATOR: For more information,
contact your FEMA Regional Office.