USPS News Link: Safety procedures, contingency plans in place
Due to Hurricane Sandy safety precautions, Postal Service headquarters and other offices in the Washington, DC, northern Virginia and Maryland metropolitan areas are operating Oct. 29 with only essential personnel on-site. Employees with telework arrangements will be working off-site.
USPS is prepared for a quick response before, during and after a hurricane; and has procedures in place to expedite recovery efforts. Updates on postal facility operation changes due to the storm are posted on the Mail Service Updates page of about.usps.com. Contingency plans are in place in the event of any PostalOne! outages, with procedures for acceptance units available on the Bulk Mail Acceptance pages of Blue.
Employees in affected areas should call the USPS National Employee Emergency Hotline, 888-363-7462, for information on work schedules or time changes. Decisions to close or curtail local deliveries in affected areas will be made by local postal management based on the most current information in their areas, and based on keeping the safety of employees, the public and the U.S. Mail as the top priority.
Updates will be provided throughout the day as more information becomes available.
Mailer Service Update Hurricane Sandy: Preparation for Hurricane Sandy has resulted in cancellation of FedEx transportation to the following locations on Monday Oct. 29:
- Baltimore, MD
- Boston, MA
- Bradley, CT
- Dulles, VA
- Harrisburg, PA
- Lehigh Valley, PA
- Philadelphia, PA
- Providence, RI
- Newark, NJ
- New York, NY
- Stewart Airport, NY
- Washington, DC
Before you begin using your smartphone as a survival tool, make sure you’re keeping it charged as the storm approaches. Turn off push notifications and any location based services until they’re needed—when the power goes out (which it will), your phone will be one of your most crucial lifelines for the several hours it’s still working.
(Learn How to Prepare for Hurricane Sandy)
There are a slew of apps you can download to give you the latest updates on the impacts of Sandy. Keep your phone charged as long as you have power and check out a few of the best apps :
USPS Update for Southern, NJ
The U.S. Postal Service is monitoring the course of Hurricane Sandy and taking actions to prepare facilities and employees in its projected path. As the storm makes landfall and the impacts become known, they will use their existing Mailer Service Update tools and employee notification protocols to keep stakeholders advised of storm impacts to USPS operations and facilities.
At this time, the Postal Service is planning to attempt delivery today, Mon., Oct. 29, in Southern NJ. There are a handful of locations at the Jersey Shore where they will curtail delivery because of the state mandated evacuation.
In addition, outgoing mail will be collected by 11 a.m. in Southern New Jersey. Customers should deposit any outgoing mail in collection boxes/locations before 11 a.m. Mon.
via Postal Service Update – Cape May County Herald.
Feds can apply for disaster relief through FEEA – FederalNewsRadio.com
Federal employees who experience major loss during Hurricane Sandy can apply for a grant from the Federal Employee Education and Assistance Fund.
Feds can fill out the application form. Grant amounts go up to $500 and are determined on a case-by-case basis. The grants are open to civilian and postal employees.
“Due to limited funding, FEEA will prioritize grants for those with major property damage or other significant hardship,” according to the FEEA website.
FEEA also offers no-interest emergency loans of up to $1,000. Loans are repaid through the employees’ payroll.
Feds can call 1-800-323-4140 for more information.
The Postal Employees’ Relief Fund (PERF) is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization operated by the various management and union organizations of the U.S. Postal Service to benefit postal employees. The Fund was created in 1990 to assist postal employees affected by Hurricane Hugo and the California earthquake, and to provide a permanent process to assist postal employees who become victims of a major natural disaster. To date, the Fund has provided 3,168 grants totaling $16,292,511 to active and retired postal employees impacted by hurricane, typhoons, earthquakes, floods, tornadoes, wildfires and home fires.
Hurricane SANDY Public Advisory National Weather Service