Operation Perfect Storm - Helping the Forgotten Recover After Hurricane Ian
On the afternoon of September 28, Hurricane Ian struck Cayo Costa, Florida as a Category 4 hurricane with 150-mph winds. A 12-foot storm surge crossed the Fort Myers area, destroying over 4,500 homes and affecting 44,000 homes in Lee County alone. The total estimated monetary value of residential and commercial property damaged by the storm was over 5 billion dollars. 56 people died in Lee County, with a total of 136 fatalities across Florida.
On October 2, a Crisis Relief and Recovery (CRR) Advanced Recon team was activated to the Fort Myers area. The mission of an ADVON team is initial disaster assessment and partner discovery.
By October 4, the Harlem Heights neighborhood was identified as a neighborhood in great need. Harlem Heights, being 4 miles inland and predominantly low income, received almost no media attention despite having almost 300 homes inundated by the storm surge. Because these homes were mostly generational properties that had never experienced a flood, almost none of the homeowners had insurance. The neighborhood was identified as being in need for immediate intervention to prevent a health emergency due to the amount of uninsured homes needing mucking, gutting and mold remediation, as well as tree removal and roof tarping to prevent further damage to people and property. We established key partnerships with Summit Church, The Heights Foundation, and the Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church and got to work.
On October 8, our Immediate Relief Team members were in place for a full 14 day immediate relief deployment which concluded on Oct 22 with the transfer to a long term partner and the recovery phase.
IMPACT SUMMARY
The mission of Crisis Relief and Recovery (CRR) is to train, prepare, and deploy teams to serve and restore communities in crisis. In disaster operations, our primary relief mission is to
- Rapidly assess damage of a community in need
- Facilitate, coordinate, and bring resources to bear on the greatest needs
- Activate teams of volunteers to positively impact the community
CRR Operation PERFECT STORM, using a seven-person leadership team, assessed over 300 homes, mobilized 300-400 local volunteers, contributing over 2200 volunteer hours, and completed work on 155 homes with an estimated value of $868,888*. We facilitated and led long-term partners to continue the rebuilding process for this neighborhood, bringing together national and regional resources.
One of our core values is “Power through Partnership”, which allows us to be a small part of a huge impact. The results reflected in this report include our efforts to assess and facilitate work in the community, but also the contributions of countless volunteers who came as local individuals, as well as members of other organizations who answered the call including the Rotary Club, All Hands and Hearts, Summit Church, and Adventures in Missions. Of special note is the Heights Foundation who was our primary partner. The Heights Foundation directed our focus, hosted our team and operations center, and provided us with many of the resources needed to perform our work. CRR is grateful for the partnership of others, and the ability to serve with them to create exponential impact for Harlem Heights.
Below is a video of a call to action in the early days of the recovery efforts, providing insight into how our force multiplier effect works.
Preparing for Long Term Recovery
CRR’s work in Fort Myers after Hurricane Ian focused not only on immediate relief, but on helping the Harlem Heights community recover stronger over the long term. In partnership with The Heights Foundation, CRR helped establish the Recovery Operations Camp, or ROC, at their property on Gladiolus Drive. Within one week, more than 40 volunteers helped prepare the site, shower trailers were installed, teams began moving into the facility, an internet hub was set up, and work began on gutting and improving the lower buildings.
The ROC became a critical base for long-term recovery work, with the capacity to house volunteer teams, serve as a tool and supply depot, and support rebuilding efforts throughout Harlem Heights. Chris and Sarah Horvath and their team from Adventures Relief took on leadership of the base and brought mission teams from around the country into the recovery effort. The site ended up hosting over 2,000 volunteers over the following 18 months, representing more than 40,000 hours of rebuild labor invested back into the community and 155 homeowners brought back to their homes. That is power through partnership and the force multiplier effect in action.
Hurricane Ian Relief By the Numbers
TOTAL RETURN ON MISSION FOR HURRICANE IAN
Help Ensure No One Faces the Storm Alone
Because 100% of funds raised during a disaster go towards helping affected communities, our Sustaining Partners cover our administration and operation costs so that we can mobilize quickly to communities like Harlem Heights. You can become a sustaining partner and help ensure that no one faces the storm alone.