A Virginia Tech disaster response expert has actionable recommendations to improve preparedness and community resilience in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene’s disaster
Tripp Shealy, associate professor at the Virginia Tech College of Engineering, spent the last several years documenting the long-term recovery from the 2016 flooding in West Virginia. He offers this insight into what residents of Western North Carolina currently face – and what they can do to optimize recovery.
“In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, local governments in Western North Carolina face a daunting recovery challenge. The storm has left communities, especially smaller, unincorporated towns, grappling with the dual burden of immediate disaster response and long-term recovery. Residents should be prepared because the conditions hindering response efforts will likely persist into recovery,” Shealy said.
Do communities need a strategy?
“Yes. If a community had a long-term resilience plan before the disaster, they are ahead in the recovery process. The problem is most communities did not. Without a strategic framework, communities will struggle to secure federal funding through programs like the Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR). I recommend gathering local leaders and community members now to develop a vision the community could rally behind and private donors could buy into. Start this vision and build support as soon as possible.”
Should communities work together?
“Yes. Counties and towns that recognize that county staff, permitting officials, and building inspectors are limited should bring in outside help, hire consultants, or sign agreements with neighboring towns to share the workload. Counties and towns that work together in this way will recover faster. Some of the cost for these resources can be covered through FEMA programs.”
How should communities deal with funding delays?
“It’s true that there is often a gap between immediate response funding from FEMA and private donations and long-term recovery funds much of which come from a CDBG-DR grant. It may take years for federal money to reach communities. Residents will likely be frustrated at times with the slow progress, and this delay in funding is likely going to be why. There is not an easy solution for this one, but approaching the issue with transparency to manage residents’ expectations is helpful.”
How should communities leverage volunteer assistance?
“Poor coordination wastes time and resources. Adjacent communities can be more effective by coordinating housing, food, tools, and materials for volunteers rather than duplicating efforts within close proximity of each other. I recommend that communities work together to develop a central team that connects resources, both volunteers and donations, to survivors and their unmet needs.”
How should communities plan for the future?
“As communities in Western North Carolina transition from response to recovery, the intent cannot be just to rebuild what was lost. These communities are facing a lot of ‘asymmetric information.’ Residents will not know the full scale of how vulnerable they are to another extreme weather event likely until after they have rebuilt from Hurricane Helene. Communities will need to advocate for themselves. Here’s how:
- Keep thorough records as your community moves from response to recovery.
- Take photos of damages and document volunteer hours.
- Keep receipts for any expenses.
“This documentation will help your community with the CDBG-DR application and aid in securing recovery funds that will enable building back better. And be prepared to provide the same information to multiple groups, as they often don’t share information with each other.”
About Shealy
Tripp Shealy is an associate professor at the Virginia Tech College of Engineering and graduate program coordinator for the Bowman Sustainable Land Development Program. Shealy’s research and teaching interest center around cultivating sustainable engineering design practices to more quickly respond to changing environmental conditions and community needs.
Interview
To schedule interviews with this expert, contact Margaret Ashburn in the media relations office at mkashburn@vt.edu or 540-529-0814.
