Sandra Maxwell

Sandra began her emergency management career with FEMA, Region IV, in Atlanta, Georgia. She assisted the State of Alabama on several disasters and served as the Deputy Director of Mitigation. After Hurricane Katrina, Sandra worked as a consultant helping the State of Louisiana in their recovery efforts. She led, trained, and assisted a team of mitigation specialists in all facets of HMGP. Sandra worked in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike in Galveston, Texas, as the 406 mitigation lead for infrastructure on the federal side. She conducted site visits and provided technical assistance and programmatic guidance to the State of Texas and local municipalities. In 2010, Sandra led the State of Alabama’s recovery efforts following the BP oil spill. She verified payment reimbursements to municipalities and government agencies and conducted outreach to state and local governments and businesses. Sandra managed a FEMA HMGP buyout program for the State of Vermont for 115 homes. She managed all project applications, conducted date-of-birth reviews, and coordinated 25 percent match funding with Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR).

Sandra helped the State of New York set-up its HMGP and review 2,500 letters of intent, eligibility review, and processing of project applications. She assisted the State of New Jersey with 1,800 HMGP Residential Elevations and coordinated the state’s Department of Environmental and FEMA process. Sandra managed the CDBG-DR Infrastructure program for Nassau County Long Island while working with the Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery in New York City. She has managed various project types, such as HMGP acquisitions, elevations, drainage projects, roads, bridges, hospitals, and schools. Most recently, she headed up the 406 mitigation team on hurricane recovery efforts for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. She set up the processes and managed a team of 16 to complete project reviews and write hazard mitigation proposals on recommended mitigation measures.