The Office of Disaster Recovery (ODR) has released the 2022 Annual Recovery Progress Report. This year’s publication outlines the evolution of five years of recovery efforts from the devasting hurricanes of 2017, which led to the establishment of the office in February 2019 up to Dec. 31, 2022.
The report highlights the advancement of policy; the development of stakeholder partnerships; and the progression of projects, mainly in the top priority areas of housing, health, hospitals and human Services, roads and transportation, schools, utilities and public buildings.
Readers will find a comprehensive examination of the territory’s successes from a five-year perspective, a look at the challenges still ahead and projections for the future.
“Since the establishment of the office in February 2019, ODR has overseen more than $2.8 billion in expenditures for completed and in-progress projects. Additionally, as of December 2022, permanent work obligations stand at $1.95 billion, representing a 277% increase in funding to commence projects across all sectors,” said Adrienne L. Williams-Octalien, director of the Office of Disaster Recovery. “We continue to tackle head-on the arduous task of collaborating, strategizing and sharing plans for disaster recovery to aid in the continued transformation of the Virgin Islands.”
The Office of Disaster Recovery persists in its mission of ‘Building a Legacy of Resilience’ by fulfilling its mandate as the center of coordination for disaster recovery funds throughout the territory. At least 783 hurricane recovery projects have been completed, and more than 500 are in progress. Over the next five years, the ODR anticipates a substantial increase in projects moving toward closeout in all priority areas.
The report can be viewed electronically at www.usviodr.com/2022-annual-report/. If there are any questions, contact the Office of Disaster Recovery at 220-1221 or via email at info@usviodr.com.