Best Laid Plans: Homeless Service Provider Disaster Plans and Communications During the 2017 US Hurricane Season

The 2017 US Atlantic hurricane season was the severest in recent US history, with Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria causing unprecedented damage and disruption to services, particularly to nonprofit community-based organizations including homeless service providers (homeless service organizations (HSOs)). This exploratory qualitative study examines the critical needs and issues experienced by HSOs funded by the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) during these hurricanes in Florida, Puerto Rico, and Texas, describes their collaborations with VA staff, and identifies lessons learned. Through interviews with VA staff, the study identified three key themes: (1) Grant and Per Diem Program grantees’ disaster plans, (2) communications, and (3) improvements to disaster planning since the 2017 hurricanes. Existing VA protocols requiring disaster plans and consistent communications worked well in ensuring that the VA remained consistently aware of organization plans and Veteran resident safety and accountability. However, the 2017 hurricane season also exposed vulnerabilities in organization disaster plans and communication procedures, especially in communicating plan changes with the VA and failing to plan for alternate means of communication. These challenges can be attributed to the unanticipated severity of the multiple storms, which produced longer-term structural damage to facilities and disruption of critical inputs and communications infrastructure. Continuity of operations planning and more rigorous review of disaster plans are mechanisms whereby the VA, and other HSO funders, can help ensure that these organizations have adequate disaster readiness to respond to future hurricanes.