The people who need help the most after disasters are least able to get it from the federal government. Internal records show that FEMA knows it has a problem.
Buildings are concentrated in places that are likely to be hit by a disaster such as a hurricane, flood or wildfire, researchers found. That includes both urban and rural hotspots.
After deadly 2009 wildfires, authorities offered to buy property to encourage people to move. Few accepted. The questions raised by Australia's experience are freshly urgent after its latest fires.
The term "100-year flood" can be confusing and misleading, scientists, local emergency officials and homeowners all agree. Experts say there's a better way to communicate about flood risk.
After back-to-back hurricanes and wildfires, insurers are looking for more-resilient construction materials. That means building model homes and then blowing off their roofs or setting them on fire.
The death toll from the storm stands at 23, with victims ranging in age from 6 to 93. One family, connected by marriage and living in two homes along the same road, lost seven members.
When damage from floods and earthquakes is tallied, the emphasis is on lost property and possessions. The poor face another, even more devastating kind of loss.
Yet that's what someone gave after the Haitian earthquake. A staffer at one nonprofit offers a plan to discourage unuseful donations from individuals and corporations and get what's really needed.
