FEMA 'ill equipped' for disasters in cities, congressman says

• Rep. Jerrold Nadler said Sandy should be a 'major wake-up call' for FEMA
• Nadler called on Congress to expedite funding for hard-hit communities in N.Y.
• Superstorm Sandy destroyed coastal towns in New York and New Jersey

WASHINGTON -- Superstorm Sandy presented an array of new challenges when it slammed into New York City, from getting relief supplies to people inside skyscrapers to finding affordable housing for displaced residents, a New York congressman said Tuesday.

"Hurricane Sandy should be a major wake-up call," Democratic Rep. Jerrold Nadler said at a hearing before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. "When disaster strikes, our densely populated urban areas and economic centers must be able to recover quickly."

The Federal Emergency Management Agency isn't positioned to handle a natural disaster in a densely populated urban setting, said Nadler, who represents Lower Manhattan and the Brooklyn waterfront communities of Red Hook, Sea Gate and Coney Island.

He said his office and other volunteers collected and hand-delivered blankets, water and food to stranded residents.

"This is just one example, but I fear it illustrates the particular challenges of an urban setting that our emergency response agencies are ill-equipped to handle, or at least haven't had to contemplate on a scale of this magnitude," he said.

Nadler and Republican Rep. Frank LoBiondo of New Jersey called on Congress to expedite funding not only to help communities recover from Sandy but to safeguard the region against future storms. LoBiondo represents a sprawling southern New Jersey district that includes shoreline from Cape May to Atlantic City.

Sandy destroyed coastal towns, flooded subway tunnels and knocked out power for millions in New York and New Jersey. In Manhattan, no power meant no water, no heat and no elevators to get in and out of high-rise apartment buildings.

"Although FEMA and the National Guard set up distribution centers around the city, in many cases people were unable to leave their apartments to pick up supplies and deliveries didn't make it to every building," Nadler said.

FEMA administrator Craig Fugate told lawmakers at Tuesday's hearing his agency positioned supplies and people in advance of the storm. He said FEMA distributed more than 16 million liters of water, almost 14 million meals and 1.5 million blankets to states hit by Sandy.

More than 1,000 FEMA workers were deployed a day before the storm hit. At the peak of the response effort, more than 17,000 federal workers and 11,000 National Guard members were on the ground assisting, Fugate said.

In New Jersey, high winds and flooding destroyed homes, businesses and beaches along the shore.

LoBiondo warned that the recovery effort will "be a long, challenging road ahead" and urged colleagues to consider the needs of storm-damaged communities when the White House requests a supplemental spending bill to finance recovery efforts.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has said his state will need about $37 billion to recover. He's expected to make his case to the White House and congressional leaders on Thursday.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who was in Washington on Monday to lobby for recovery money, has estimated his state will need $42 billion.

The White House is expected to release its request by the end of the week. It's not expected to be as much as the states are seeking.

Fugate told lawmakers that FEMA's disaster relief fund, which had $7.1 billion when fiscal 2013 began on Oct. 1, had paid out more than $1.93 billion for Sandy relief as of Nov. 26. It had about $4.8 billion remaining and will likely need additional funding by early spring, he said.

Committee Chairman John Mica, a Florida Republican, urged Fugate to find ways to get funding to affected areas faster, with a minimum of red tape. He and other Republicans on the committee called on the Senate to take up a bill passed by the House earlier this year aimed at speeding disaster relief efforts.