ALAN continues to work with our partners to respond to damages caused by Hurricane Sandy. Refer to www.FEMA.gov, www.nvoad.org for up-to-date information on government and non-profit response. Information on business response activities is available at US Chamber and MS Incident Response.
KNOWN IMPACTS TO BUSINESS / SUPPLY CHAIN ACTIVITIES
- Homeowners, renters, or businesses of any size affected by Hurricane Sandy may be eligible for direct assistance from FEMA or low-interest loans from the Small Business Administration (SBA). SBA provides low interest disaster loans to homeowners, renters, businesses of all sizes and private, nonprofit organizations to repair or replace real estate, personal property, machinery & equipment, inventory and business assets that have been damaged or destroyed in a declared disaster. Information on eligibility and application procedures is available at DisasterAssistance.gov.
- **ALAN is aggregating information on supply chain disruptions resulting from this event as this will aid in identifying potential resource shortfalls and where support from emergency and non-profit organizations may be needed most. If you are aware of business disruptions resulting from this event please report them using our data gathering form. All information will be treated confidentially. (Special thanks to Dr. Arash Azadegan of Rutgers for creating this tool.)
- Refer to previous advisories for additional information.
- Fuel access remains a priority challenge for businesses and individuals, especially in New York and New Jersey. Twitter hashtags #njgas; #njopen; #nygas; #nyopen are being used to find available fueling. Other sources:
- States of emergency often provide provisions to remove restrictions on weight / size / hours of service but will vary by state. To obtain oversize/overweight permits, the State(s) in which the vehicles will travel will need to be contacted. The link below provides contact information for State permitting offices: http://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/sw/permit_report/index.htm
- New Jersey has issued a temporary waiver of requirement for IRP and IFTA trip permits.
- The Journal of Commerce and Cargo Business News reported on the reopening of many freight terminals in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast.
- On October 31, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in consultation with the US Department of Energy, issued an emergency wavier of the reformulated gasoline (RFG) requirements for the States of Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, , and Virginia, and the District of Columbia. The waiver also applies to Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee to allow for fuel flexibility in the system. The waiver will be in effect through November 20. (Energy.gov situation report #9)
As of November 1, the Captain of the Port (COTP) of New York has authorized loaded fuel barges to transit to all operational facilities in the Upper Bay, the North River (Hudson) and the East River to Long Island Sound. Fuel barges must have a predetermined fuel facility destination at which to offload their cargo before authorization to enter or transit within the port is granted. The Arthur Kill, Kill Van Kull, and Buttermilk Channel will remain closed for all vessel traffic due to known hazardous conditions in the water. The U.S. Coast Guard has reopened all other port sectors affected by Sandy. (Energy.gov situation report #9)
ELECTRICAL SERVICE
Power restoration continues. As of 3 pm eastern, 4,454,650 customers in 12 states remained without power, down from the peak of 8,317,507 (Energy.gov situation report #9). A list of outage information websites is at the end of this report. (updated 11/1/2012)
COMMUNICATIONS
Cell site outages overall have declined from approximately 25 percent to 19 percent. Cable services outages have declined to approximately 12 – 14 percent, from initial outages estimates of 25 percent. (FCC.gov)
ALAN ACTIVITIES AND HOW TO HELP
- ALAN is an official partner of the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (National VOAD). National VOAD is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, membership based organization that serves as the forum where organizations share knowledge and resources throughout the disaster cycle—preparation, response and recovery —to help disaster survivors and their communities. ALAN supports state and National VOAD members by offering assistance identifying transportation services, staging areas, storage, expert advice and other vital resources.
- ALAN is participating in VOAD, Emergency Management, and
Business Emergency Operations Centers (BEOC) conference calls and
monitoring media outlets for information. No unmet needs or gaps have
been identified and no active support requests are open at this time.
- Food: Bulk quantities for the Mountaineer Foodbank in West Virginia. Because of the storm and increased demand on Food Banks and Pantries there is an even greater need for donations of food, in particularly frozen and refrigerated food.
- Power and clean up supplies: Generators, dewatering pumps, clean up materials/kits, shovels, bags, and cleaning materials for salt water are needed to support businesses in Queens.
- The ALAN portal is being used as the aggregator portal for needs from all the States in the disaster zone. It may take a few days before needs are posted as local resources are exhausted and gaps emerge. Please check the portal to see what needs have been posted or request registration to receive notifications.
- NOTE: Offers of support from member organizations may also be posted to the portal (preferred) or sent to Kathy@ALANAid.org for review and processing. Offers should include product / service, quantity, location, and contact information. Links to opportunities for volunteer support are posted on the Points of Light website and HandsOnNetwork.
- Businesses with associates impacted by Sandy can direct them to 211 / 311 / United Way. 211 / 311 provides referrals for services and emotional / spiritual care. New Jersey and New York City links included.
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