• Home
  • Military Discounts
    • Military & Veteran Discount List
    • Local Military and Veterans Discounts
    • Apple Military Discount
    • Veteran & Military Cell Phone Discounts
    • Gym and Health Club Discounts
  • Benefits
    • 10 Veterans Benefits You May Not Know About
    • Top Military Spouse Benefits
    • Medal of Honor: Benefits, History and Facts
    • Purple Heart Benefits
    • Veterans Health A to Z
  • Housing & Home Ownership
    • VA Loan Calculator
    • VA Loan Limits by County
    • VA Home Loan Guide
    • 5 Benefits of a VA Loan
    • 2022 BAH Rates
    • BAH Calculator
  • Money & Finance
    • 2022 Military Pay Charts
    • 2022 Defense Budget
    • 2022 Military Pay
    • 2022 Military Pay Charts
    • COLA Watch 2022-2023
    • Military Pay Calculator
    • Military Pay Dates
    • VA Disability Rates
  • Jobs
    • Veteran Friendly Employers
    • Military Spouse Employment Preference
    • Veterans Employment and Training Service (VETS)
    • Security Clearance Jobs After the Military
  • Education
    • Veteran Friendly Colleges
    • Online Colleges with Military Discounts
    • Veteran Friendly Colleges Guide
    • Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts (MyCAA)
    • Monthly Housing Allowance (MHA) for the GI Bill
    • Forever GI Bill
  • Resources
    • How to Get a Veterans ID Card
    • Veterans ID on Driver’s License or ID Card by State
    • Military ID Cards
    • Military Calendar
    • State Veteran’s Benefits
Home » The Role of the Army Corps of Engineers in Natural Disasters

The Role of the Army Corps of Engineers in Natural Disasters

The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) responds to natural disasters and other emergencies as part of its relief mission work. The USACE story begins in the earliest days of America; the federal government got into disaster relief work which first began helping people avoid flooding along the Mississippi River after the Civil War.

Army Corps of Engineers and their Role in Natural DisastersNot long after this effort, USACE was forming–it would take time to grow into the major federal concern it is today, but the evolution did happen.

What is the role of USACE in natural disasters? That depends greatly on the disaster. Army Corps of Engineers activities have included snow removal after a major blizzard to disaster responses associated with volcanic activity.

What Is USACE?

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is a “primarily civilian” federal public engineering, design, and management agency that operates as part of the Department of Defense. It has a mandate to do public works, disaster relief, humanitarian missions, and engineering projects.

The Army Corps of Engineers Mandate For Disasters

USACE doesn’t focus exclusively on natural disasters, but in that area the agency has two basic mandates:


Emergency Support Function #3

USACE is tasked, under the National Response Framework, to function as the primary federal agency for Emergency Support Function #3 – Public Works and Engineering.

According to the Corps official site, this role includes assisting the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA, “by coordinating federal public works and engineering-related support, as well as providing technical assistance, engineering expertise, and construction management to prevent, prepare for, respond to, and/or recover from domestic incidents.”

Core missions under Emergency Support Function #3 include:

  • Temporary Emergency Power
  • Temporary Housing
  • Temporary Roofing
  • Debris Management
  • Critical Public Facilities
  • Infrastructure Assessment
  • Technical Assistance
  • Water/Wastewater Response
  • Support for Urban Search & Rescue (US&R)

Emergency Support Function #9

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers also functions as a supporting agency for Emergency Support Function #9 – Search and Rescue. FEMA acts as the lead agency in this respect, but USACE must support in a variety of ways including supporting the National Urban Search and Rescue (US&R) Response System.


The Role of USACE In Natural Disasters: A Timeline

From virtually the moment the agency was created, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has participated in a wide variety of natural disaster efforts.

1800s-1906: The first federal relief effort involved helping people escape flooding at the Mississippi River in 1865. In 1882 USACE was already active and helping out with yet another Mississippi flood incident.

USACE was getting a lot of experience dealing with rising waters but also with other natural disasters; a Pennsylvania flood in 1889 and the San Francisco Earthquake of 1906.

 1937-1960: USACE gets a reorganization; the earliest version of today’s USACE “districts” was created to help develop region-specific disaster recovery plans. In 1937, USACE contingency planning was upgraded to include flood recovery plans district-by-district.

1947 brought a unique problem for the Corps to deal with–an explosion of more than two thousand pounds of ammonium nitrate that occurred in Texas City, Texas.

This disaster involved a fire and explosion on board the  SS Grandcamp. The explosion created a whopping 15-foot tidal wave. More than four thousand people were affected by the incident.

In 1949, a blizzard dumped as much as 40 inches of snow on some parts of the Great Plains, resulting in a need for the Army Corps of Engineers to participate in emergency snow removal operations there. Going forward, USACE was gaining a reputation for being the go-to agency for natural disasters, but especially issues dealing with water, canals, dams, etc.

1950-1980: The passage of the Federal Disaster Act of 1950 codified the USACE role as a lead federal disaster agency; the legislation identifies USACE as the nation’s leading flood response organization.

In 1960, there were a pair of major natural disasters requiring Corps of Engineers help; an earthquake in Alaska in 1964 registered 9.2 on the Richter Scale; the quake hit approximately 15 miles south of Prince William Sound.

Another disaster came in the form of Hurricane Camille in 1969, and by the time USACE efforts were required for Tropical Storm Agnes in 1972, it was clear that more federal responsibility for disaster recovery efforts would be required. In 1974, Congress began taking steps to make that happen.

In 1979 a new agency would change the face of American disaster recovery efforts; the  Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was named in Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978. FEMA and USACE work closely together and represent an important resource in times of natural disasters.

1980 and Beyond: USACE formally establishes an emergency management program in the late 1980s; the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act included language authorizing FEMA to provide services for any disaster no matter what the cause. USACE and FEMA would partner for future needs in the wake of floods, volcanoes, and even viral outbreaks.

From 1989 to the present, USACE efforts have included:

  • The Exxon Valdez oil spill
  • Hurricane Hugo
  • Loma Prieta Earthquake in California
  • Hurricanes Andrew
  • Hurricane Iniki
  • Mississippi River flooding
  • Missouri Rivers flooding
  • Northridge earthquake in California

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Role In Coronavirus Relief Efforts

USACE provided a vital service during the coronavirus pandemic; domestic relief operations include construction of alternative treatment areas in places like New York City. As of March 25, 2020, USACE was tasked with five FEMA mission assignments worth more than $300 million and requiring over 250 people to carry out.

A press release issued by USACE reminds that the agency coordinates with federal and non-federal entities in the disaster relief efforts intended to mitigate the spread of coronavirus. These efforts include coordination with FEMA, the National Guard, individual state governments, and contractors.


About The AuthorJoe Wallace is a 13-year veteran of the United States Air Force and a former reporter for Air Force Television News


Related Articles
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers American Red Cross
Fire and Emergency Management Degrees Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society  
Natural Disasters at Military Bases Defense Production Act

Military + Veteran Discounts

Want 30+ Mil/Vet discounts to use today? Enter your email for updates and we'll send it!
Name(Required)

VA Home Loans

Popular Articles

2022 VA Disability Rates

2022 Military Pay

Military Pay Calculator

VA Loan Calculator

2022 BAH Rates

Search Veteran.com

Military Benefits Logo

Company

  • About
  • Contact Us
  • Add a Discount
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Disclosure
  • Unsubscribe

Quick Links

  • Home
  • Military Discounts
  • Benefits
  • Housing & Ownership
  • Money & Finance
  • Employment
  • Education
  • Resources

Connect With Us

  • facebook
  • instagram
  • pinterest
  • twitter
  • youtube
Copyright © 2022 Three Creeks Media, LLC

Veteran.com is a property of Three Creeks Media. Neither Veteran.com nor Three Creeks Media are associated with or endorsed by the U.S. Departments of Defense or Veterans Affairs. The content on Veteran.com is produced by Three Creeks Media, its partners, affiliates and contractors, any opinions or statements on Veteran.com should not be attributed to the Dept. of Veterans Affairs , the Dept. of Defense or any governmental entity. If you have questions about Veteran programs offered through or by the Dept. of Veterans Affairs, please visit their website at va.gov. The content offered on Veteran.com is for general informational purposes only and may not be relevant to any consumer’s specific situation, this content should not be construed as legal or financial advice. If you have questions of a specific nature consider consulting a financial professional, accountant or attorney to discuss. References to third-party products, rates and offers may change without notice.

Advertising Notice: Veteran.com and Three Creeks Media, its parent and affiliate companies, may receive compensation through advertising placements on Veteran.com; For any rankings or lists on this site, Veteran.com may receive compensation from the companies being ranked and this compensation may affect how, where and in what order products and companies appear in the rankings and lists. If a ranking or list has a company noted to be a “partner” the indicated company is a corporate affiliate of Veteran.com. No tables, rankings or lists are fully comprehensive and do not include all companies or available products.

Editorial Disclosure: Editorial content on Veteran.com may include opinions. Any opinions are those of the author alone, and not those of an advertiser to the site nor of Veteran.com.