Puerto Rico has suffered the compounded effects of multiple disasters since the devastating impacts of Hurricanes Irma and Maria in September 2017. At the end of 2019, the island was impacted with recurrent seismic activity in the southwest region, and in January 2020 the unset of the COVID-19 pandemic. All these disasters are underscored by a crush¬ing debt crisis and a federally mandated austerity regime since 2016. Recent disasters have revealed serious vulnerabilities in Puerto Rico's prepared¬ness planning, institutional response capacity and coordination, resource management at various levels of implementation, data availability, and the lack of suitable and accessible mechanisms to sup¬port adequate local community engagement. The collection of studies included in this special volume of CENTRO Journal show evidence of how post disaster recovery is progressing in Puerto Rico, the challenges and opportunities for local participation in reconstruction programs, and the potential of nonprofit organizations, municipalities, and local businesses to contribute to post disaster recovery in Puerto Rico. To date, the available evidence leads to a portrait of an uneven recovery. The studies included in this volume indicate that the long-term impact of post-disaster federal funding for economic recovery is contingent on implementing a comprehensive strategy for reforming public policy to encourage and support nonprofit developers' participation in reconstruction programs, building industry capacity by strengthening intermediaries and CDCs, encouraging intra-industry partnerships and collaborations, and providing professional development for economic recovery.

The collection of studies included in this special volume of the CENTRO Journal show evidence of how post disaster recovery is progressing in Puerto Rico, and the challenges and opportunities for local participation in reconstruction programs. To date, the available evidence leads to a portrait of an uneven recovery. A recovery characterized by the bifurcation of efforts from the civic sector and central and federal governments. The studies included in this special volume of the CENTRO Journal analyze challenges and opportunities for local participation in reconstruction programs and their potential to contribute to post disaster recovery in Puerto Rico.

This publication is a comprehensive look at how the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean have dealt with the enormous and recurring impact of natural disasters on their lives and fragile economies. Published as a contribution from this Region to the World Conference on Natural Disaster Reduction in 1994, the book traces the transition from an era of improvised response and poorly coordinated international assistance to the more aggressive stance on disaster preparedness and prevention taken in many countries today.--Publisher's description.

Great natural disasters are rare, but their aftermath can change the fortunes of a city or region forever. This book and its companion Policy Focus Report identify lessons from different parts of the world to help communities and government leaders better organize for recovery after future disasters. The authors consider the processes and outcomes of community recovery and reconstruction following major disasters in six countries: China, New Zealand, India, Indonesia, Japan, and the United States. Post-disaster reconstruction offers opportunities to improve construction and design standards, renew infrastructure, create new land use arrangements, reinvent economies, and improve governance. If done well, reconstruction can help break the cycle of disaster-related impacts and losses, and improve the resilience of a city or region.

Puerto Rico ha sufrido los efectos agravados de múltiples desastres desde los devastadores impactos de los huracanes de 2017, la actividad sísmica recurrente en la región suroeste a fines de 2019, incluido un terremoto de magnitud 6.4 en enero de 2020, hasta la crisis de salud resultante de la actual pandemia de COVID-19. En el contexto de una abrumadora crisis de deuda y un régimen de austeridad por mandato federal desde 2016, los desastres recientes han revelado graves vulnerabilidades en la planificación de la preparación de Puerto Rico, la capacidad y la coordinación de respuesta institucional, la administración de recursos en varios niveles de implementación, la disponibilidad de datos y la falta de mecanismos adecuados y accesibles para apoyar la participación adecuada de las comunidades. La colección de estudios incluidos en este volumen especial de CENTRO Journal discuten la evidencia de cómo está progresando la recuperación posdesastre en Puerto Rico, y los desafíos y las oportunidades para la participación local en los programas de reconstrucción y su potencial para contribuir a la recuperación posdesastre en Puerto Rico. Hasta la fecha, la evidencia disponible nos muestra que ha habido una recuperación desigual. Los estudios incluidos en este volumen proponen que los beneficios a largo plazo de los programas federales de recuperación de desastres dependen de que se reforme la política pública para alentar y apoyar la participación de desarrolladores sin fines de lucro en el desarrollo de programas de reconstrucción, fortalecer la capacidad de las organizaciones sin fines de lucro, fomentar asociaciones y colaboraciones, y brindar desarrollo profesional para la recuperación económica.

The authors analyze supply-chain management and recovery governance in four disaster-ridden countries. Research was conducted in Puerto Rico to assess recovery after Hurricanes Irma and Maria, recommend restorative measures, and improve resilience.

With its 155 mile-per-hour sustained windspeeds, the near-Category 5 Hurricane Maria brought catastrophic devastation and destruction as it diagonally crossed the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico from the southeast to the northwest on September 20, 2017. The official death toll estimate of 2,975 lost lives means this record storm became one of the most devasting hurricanes not only for Puerto Rico but for the U.S. Many of these deaths, as well as the prolonged human suffering, were attributed to what was described as inadequate disaster response and slow restoration of basic services (including running water, electricity, and the provision and distribution of food and medicine), and not to the direct impact of the hurricane itself. At the same time, Hurricane Maria made landfall when Puerto Rico had been confronting a severe economic crisis surging for over a decade. This crisis, referred to as La Crisis Boricua, was characterized by a significant loss of industry and jobs, a deteriorating infrastructure, record net outmigration, a shrinking and rapidly aging population, rising healthcare under-coverage, a bankrupt government, and federal legislation restricting fiscal policy decisions made by elected officials on the island. Thus, Hurricane Maria exacerbated the effects of La Crisis Boricua on the socioeconomic, health, and demographic outcomes affecting Puerto Ricans on the island and U.S. mainland. Bringing together scholars from a wide variety of disciplines (including economics, sociology, demography, health, psychology, disaster research, political science, education, the arts, and others), this volume represents one of the first interdisciplinary sets of studies dedicated to analyzing the effects of Hurricane Maria on island and stateside Puerto Ricans. Specific topics cover Hurricane Maria’s impact on labor market outcomes, including wages and employment by industry; health implications, including mental health; changes in artistic expression; civic engagement; and disaster response and recovery. A common thread through many of the chapters was the destruction of Puerto Rico’s electrical grid and the prolonged restoration of electricity and other essential services that resulted in the loss of thousands of lives.