The people of Puerto Rico deserve the same level of service, compassion, and speed of disaster recovery as any other U.S. citizen on the mainland. When it comes to helping governments rebuild smarter and stronger, IEM has defined the art of what is possible.

For nearly four decades, IEM has helped governments prepare for, respond to, and recover from the worst disasters in U.S. history. We have effectively managed hundreds of millions of dollars of disaster assistance coming from a wide array of sources and programs, including federal, state, local, non-profit, philanthropic, and private sector organizations. Most importantly, throughout every part of our work, we never lose sight of our primary objective: putting survivors first.

Puerto Rico deserves a best-in-class effort to make a full recovery from these hurricanes. Already, IEM has personnel deployed in Puerto Rico providing life-saving air operations and logistical support for evacuees and first responders. We are ready to hit the ground running to bring normalcy back to the lives of Puerto Ricans, encourage tourism, and finally help Puerto Rico make a full recovery from this catastrophe.

Preparing for disasters needs to result in actionable plans. The threat of disasters is real and will only grow in frequency and severity over time. The good news is that we are not powerless against this challenge. As tragic as Maria was, we now have an opportunity to make important improvements on how we prepare for the worst. Because it is not a matter of if, but when, it will happen again.