Colorado’s New Chief Recovery Officer to Help Lead Response to Flooding

Devastating flooding has affected 17 counties in Colorado and led Gov. John Hickenlooper to bring on a chief recovery officer to work with the state’s Office of Emergency Management, FEMA and local partners on moving forward.

In an announcement on Sept. 19, Hickenlooper named Jerre Stead, executive chairman of global information company IHS Inc., to the state’s new role. Stead and his colleagues will donate their time to help Colorado recover, according to a press release.

“We are about to embark on a rebuilding effort of a truly epic scale,” Hickenlooper said in a statement. “It’s essential that we have the right team in place to help coordinate efforts at the local, state and federal levels.”

The recovery officer’s roles will include:

• Ensuring all recovery assessments are completed by coordinating with the Office of Emergency Management.
• Ensuring all local communities understand resource allocation by coordinating with the Office of Emergency Management and working with the General Assembly.
• Ensuring initial assessment of winter conditions and recovery needs, with an execution plan for response presented to the governor.
• Advocating for federal funding and ensuring that Colorado receives all available funding.
• Ensuring quality control of work and “building for the future.”
• Establishing mechanisms for fundraising for recovery and for use of volunteers, including home rebuilding, and establishing a volunteer coordination structure and fundraising ability to assist in efforts.
• Coordinating with local leaders to ensure positive working relations.

The Colorado Department of Transportation also created a new group, the Infrastructure Recovery Force, to help with rebuilding damaged parts of the state’s highway system. Fifty bridges were damaged or destroyed by the flooding and more than 200 miles of state highway were impacted. The Infrastructure Recovery Force will repair as much of the damaged highway system as possible before Dec. 1 and assist local governments in re-establishing links to local roads, bridges, water, sewer, power and communications. The Federal Highway Administration made $35 million in Quick Release emergency funds available, and Colorado’s Transportation Commission allocated $100 million to begin initial repairs, according to the state.