Texas Division of Emergency Management Deploys Additional Subject Matter Experts to Support Wildfire Recovery Efforts in Hawaii

AUSTIN – The Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) announced today that the agency has deployed additional disaster recovery personnel to Hawaii to assist communities following the devastating wildfire in Maui County in August.

“TDEM is providing additional disaster recovery subject matter experts to aid Hawaiian communities as they work through the process of recovering from the destructive wildfire that occurred this summer,” said Texas Emergency Management Chief Nim Kidd. “TDEM continues to support Hawaii, just as our state partners assist Texas in our times of need.”

At the direction of Governor Greg Abbott, TDEM has deployed the following emergency management resources to Hawaii’s State Emergency Operations Center under the Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC):

• Public Assistance personnel to provide direct support to impacted communities with navigating the Public Assistance Grant Program process
• Individual Assistance personnel to provide hands-on support with identifying eligibility for — and administering financial assistance programs to — individuals and households affected by the wildfires
• Disaster Finance Accounting personnel to assist with bookkeeping, supporting management of incident costs, administrative assistance, logging of personnel time, lease negotiations, and vendor contracting

The Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC) is a state-to-state mutual aid system that enables states to provide assistance and share resources with another state in response to a disaster or emergency. EMAC members can share resources from all disciplines to protect personnel who deploy, and EMAC will reimburse for mission-related costs. For more information, visit emacweb.org.