U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano assured Connecticut residents Thursday that the federal government has their backs in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy.
"We understand the urgency of the situation," Napolitano said at a press briefing outside Housatonic Community College in Bridgeport, after touring local wreckage with Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and state legislators.
"We'll continue to bring in the resources we can," she said.
Speaking in a city that had 44 percent of its residents without power as of 12:30 p.m. Thursday, Napolitano said the federal government, working with the Red Cross, has provided meals and water to Connecticut residents, and plans to open more disaster recovery centers next week.
Find a disaster recovery center near you by clicking here.
"Our aim is to be very proactive," she said of her department, which includes the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Coast Guard.
Napolitano said damage assessments will begin Friday for towns seeking a declaration of emergency.
She urged residents affected by Sandy to register with FEMA for financial aid. Learn more about these programs by visiting FEMA’s website or by calling 800.621.3362. In addition, Napolitano said FEMA will be setting up facilities on the ground to assist individuals and small business owners sign up for the help.
The U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security said she's pleased to report that the number of people in area shelters have gone down and "it's our goal to make [those] shelters temporary."
Before Sandy started to impact the region, the Obama Administration signed a declaration of emergency for the state of Connecticut. Malloy said at the time the declaration would make it easier for Connecticut to seek federal assistance for cleanup efforts post-Sandy.
On Thursday, the governor said he's been on the phone with President Obama four times in the past few days and Connecticut "is getting all the assistance we ask for."
After viewing the damage in Connecticut first-hand, Napolitano said, "It's one thing to hear about the damage, it’s another thing to see it.”
Do you enjoy your life or are you constantly angry? I pity you.
Yes the U.S. Navy Seals could have been deployed. Will Obama as commander in chief get blamed? No. Hillary Clinton will take the blame. Hurricane Sandy has provided a diversion for President Obama from criticism. Obama certainly looks more presidential touring the storm ravaged sites and making speeches about FEMA than talking about the Middle East. Southern New England, New York and New Jersey. all states that Obama will win this Tuesday have been severely impacted by this terrible storrm. We all hope that everyone will be able to get their homes repaired, businesses back open and losses compensated quickly.
CSG is an interagency group that specializes in both hostage situations and any terror attack on U.S. interests. That decision, according to senior military and intelligence officials, may have stymied some of the response to the attack. According to senior military officials, the administration also did not deploy the interagency team made up of Department of Defense, FBI, CIA and State Department: the Foreign Emergency Support Team (FEST). It was decided that FEST was not to be sent to coordinate an on-the-ground response and help facilitate the FBI’s interests into Benghazi. It took 24 days for the FBI team in Libya to gain access to the compound. Want more info check out this link: Http://foxnewsinsider.com/2012/11/01/breaking-news-on-the-libya-attack-top-administration-officials-did-not-call-on-counterterrorism-agencies/
Hey Jim, He did put campaign aside and go to New Jersey. He also put the politics aside altogether and worked with Governor Christie to make sure the federal government was there for his constituency. He also sent Napolitano here to CT. Do you think he also should have visited CT? Peacemaker, your off topic. This is an article about federal aid to the victims of Sandy. Did you want some reporter to take time from another reporter asking about fresh water or electricity to grill him about Lybia and his alleged n-e-g-l-e-g-a-n-c-e. The small words can be tough to spell sometimes. Try sounding it out in your head first next time.
Look at the earlier comments. "Revman" either did not read or did not comprehend the article so I would not hold my breath waiting for a pertinent response. It is bad enough that the two people you mention will turn any article regardless of its content into an opportunity to post their worn out Obama bashing, but to do it when the subject matter is a natural disaster that took lives, property, and caused so many hardships is disgusting.