Steve, I am rolling whenever you're
ready. Okay, just so we have it for
the camera, could you spell your
first and last name for me?
Sure, Cassandra Liebel, C-A-S-S,
A-N-D-R-A, Liebel is L-I,
B as in boy, A.L.
What's your title?
Director of Office of Emergency
Management from Milwaukee County.
How long have you had this position?
I've been with the Milwaukee County
since June of 2020.
So what are you out here doing today
with FEMA and the other
emergency response folks?
Milwaukee County's OEM has been
working with all of our partners
here just to kind of guide them
around the community.
We're serving as their
escorts around the community because
we have familiarity with the
landscape so that's our role today
but prior to this we've been working
to collaborate all or
coordinate all the information
gathering from 211
reports so that we can give that
picture to women to the FEMA
representatives of the damage that
we've experienced in the community
What is
the assessment process like for you
all? I know that there have been
16,000 reports to
2-1-1.
What is that assessment process?
Really, it's just about
documentation.
The assessment process is about
contacting communities, whether they
put their information in 2-1-1 or
now that we're doing the door
knocks, getting the information,
documenting what they're reporting
that's damaged, taking pictures when
appropriate, and just putting
that all together into one succinct
package so that they can review it
for the eligibility package.
What is the timeline for all
of this?
That is a very open to
be honest right now we are
anticipating that FEMA will be on
the ground through next early next
week but it depends on how quickly
we're inefficient we're able to get
through a lot of these door
knocks and information gathering if
we're about to get to quicker then
we can move the process along just
that slightly faster but
then we move it on to the next level
of the state and then the federal
and then their timeline is unknown
to us.
So I last saw that you all have done
something like 3,500 assessments.
And then again, there's that 6,000
reported damage reports.
Do you all expect to close that
entire gap and get
apples to apples there number wise?
I think that what we're really just
trying to get a snapshot.
So we don't have to, the message I
think people need to understand is
we don't have to see every damage,
we don't have to every impacted
property. We just need to get
representative sample of what has
happened across the county.
And so I don't wanna get specific
to the numbers because it really
is about getting that representative
sample.
So we are anticipating getting
as many as we can and we think we
have a valid enough argument.
To support our case.
And then I think that's when Fimo
will be able to say, we think you've
met the threshold and we're gonna
move on to the next step of the
process.
Than the federal government would.
The recommendation would be made and
so they would process that
information and then make their
assessment and then they can make
the recommendation and the president
would make the final say.
And then money comes to Milwaukee
for this, right?
Potentially, yes, there's definitely
opportunities, but it can come in
different formats. There can be
loans, there can be grants, there
can be direct funds.
So it depends on what people
qualify, the level of damage that
they are determined to have based
off of FEMA's determinations,
and then kind of where they fit
within the parameters of the
victims, so to speak.
So homeowners, business owners have
different parameters.
So what people will receive will be
based off that threshold.
What have you seen personally?
Describe some of the damage you've
seen.
What we've seen is just a lot of
lost property.
What we're seeing now, the large
piles of garbage where people are
losing their belongings, their
memories, things along those lines,
and just impacting on their day to
day life.
We've seen people having to come
into our shelters because
they're unable to stay in their
current locations, families with
young children.
So that's some of the hardships that
we've seeing is just the loss of
significant property and then just
that stability in housing that
people are struggling with.
You mentioned kids.
Are some schools damaged as well?
Have you seen that?
We haven't got really, that's
kind of more so in the public
assistance phase of things.
And so we're waiting for the
municipalities to report out any of
that damage. OK.
Is there anything else that I didn't
ask that's important?
I think the biggest thing I want
to highlight is just
keeping up with the process and
using credible sources, going
through the county, looking at our
websites, we're going to keep as
accurate update information as
possible and just protecting each
other against any types of scams
or untoward people that we want to
make sure that people aren't taken
advantage of.
So just try to make sure that we
rely on reliable sources.
What are some of the scams that
you've heard about?
Well, just we don't know on
uninsured individuals who may want
to come into your homes.
We don't know what they're who
they're affiliated with or not.
They may not be locally affiliated
and you may have them come in to
do work, but they're uninsure or
they don't have any local ties.
So you can't go back.
So we just want to make sure that
you're doing your better business.
When we get to that phase, you're
getting a better business checks and
that we're using those reliable
contractors that are insured and
things like that. So I think we just
wanna make sure that people are not
letting strangers into their homes.
In giving out information that
can harm them in the future when it
comes to identity.
Have you also heard about online
scams of folks promising money and
you have to sign up and you have to
pay a fee and then get money back,
that kind of thing?
I have not personally, but I'm
sure because of just the nature of
disaster response, that is
a thing.
So just, like I said, being careful
of getting information from
reliable sources.
Thank you so much for your time.
Thank you.