How to Help Your Customers through the Phases of Disaster Response and Recovery

Living close to the Texas Gulf Coast, I have experienced multiple hurricanes and tropical storms, and each incident has been challenging in its own way, both before and after. Natural disasters can be shocking and life-altering, especially for those who aren’t adequately prepared. 

Recovering from a disaster has several phases, depending on multiple factors, including the severity of the disaster incident and the preparations taken before the disaster. At SpringFour, we offer multiple types of resources for consumers throughout the phases of preparation, response, and recovery. 

Because disaster resiliency starts with preparation, make sure that your customers are ready to address their needs. SpringFour provides contact information for Emergency Management offices in more than 300 cities and counties across the country, so that consumers can access the resources they will need before disaster strikes. How your customers prepare will influence how they navigate the phases of response and recovery. 

The first phase of disaster response is always an assessment of damages and an inventory of resources needed for general survival: food, shelter, water. Once the initial assessment is complete and survivors are confident that they have the resources they need to survive, the recovery phase begins.

Preparing a plan for managing income, expenses, and debt is key to recovery. 

SpringFour’s Financial Health Resource Guides provide information and resources for recovery for different types of disasters such as fire, floods, and tornados. The Guides also offer tips for navigating the application for federal assistance from FEMA, as well as other disaster benefits that survivors are eligible for. 

If a disaster declaration for a county includes Individual Assistance from FEMA, we add the declaration as a resource so that the application for assistance from FEMA is easy to find. 

Immediately following a disaster, resources generally come from national organizations and the federal government to address immediate needs. In the weeks and months after the disaster, as damage and resource needs have been assessed, local nonprofits and foundations get more involved and provide additional resources. 

We continually monitor for these additional local resources and add them as they come online. SpringFour understands that different types of resources are needed through the phases of disaster response and recovery, and works to ensure those valuable resources are available for your customers.

Contact resources@springfour.com to learn more about our disaster recovery category and how SpringFour can assist your customers. 

 Kate McCarthy

Director of Product Development, SpringFour