FOOTPRINT PROJECT BLOG
From relief to resilience
IMPACT
We’ve deployed 250+ kW of mobile solar
and 700+ kWh of mobile battery storage
to 25+ disaster response and recovery missions,
providing emergency clean power access to 50,000+ people.
IN THE FIELD
Hurricane Helene Response & Recovery
On September 22, 2024, Hurricane Helene emerged in the Caribbean Sea, rapidly intensifying into a devastating Category 4 storm aimed at Florida and later impacting six states, particularly wreaking havoc in North Carolina. Our team mobilized quickly, deploying renewable energy solutions and establishing essential support hubs to aid communities in desperate need. From setting up battery libraries for residents relying on medical equipment to transforming local businesses into resource hubs, our efforts grew into the largest response and recovery operation in our history. Over $200,000 was raised, and nearly $400,000 worth of sustainable equipment was deployed. As we transitioned to long-term recovery, we launched initiatives like the WNC Free Store, ensuring communities can regain their footing sustainably.
DIRECT RELIEF DONATES $250,000 TO FOOTPRINT PROJECT AHEAD OF DISASTER SEASON TO POWER CRITICAL HEALTH SERVICES
Footprint Project’s partner in resilient power for health, Direct Relief, donated $250,000 to proactively fund the deployment of mobile solar and battery storage to communities impacted by disasters this year.
Microgrids for Maui
When fires devastated communities on Maui in August, we watched in horror as the news traveled across the Pacific, reports growing deadlier and more devastating by the hour. Never having been to Hawai’i, we began to strategize about how we could help.
Lighting the Way to Recovery in Mississippi
Early this spring, a series of tornadoes devastated several communities in rural Mississippi. We joined forces with local partners requesting emergency power: Delta Health Center in Rolling Fork, the Fannie Lou Hamer Center for Change in Eupora, and the Zion Baptist Association in Winona. These hubs would go on to serve as foundations of recovery and resilience in their communities.
Building Power in the Eye of Hurricane Ian
A few months ago, long before a tropical depression that would become Hurricane Ian formed in the Caribbean, the United Methodist Committee on Relief decided to invest in resilient power solutions for their disaster response teams.
Solar Generators Light Up Ukraine
At Footprint Project, we focus on deploying solar generators to disasters in the domestic U.S. and Puerto Rico. Logistics, program sustainability, cultural competency, and overall need have always pointed us in the direction of our own backyard when it comes to building back greener - until Russia invaded Ukraine in February.
Spring tornado devastates New Orleans community
Less than 24 hours after a rare, EF3 tornado hit New Orleans, Footprint Project was on the ground to provide emergency clean power for neighbors in the hardest hit area of Arabi.
Kentucky Tornadoes Put Solar to the Test
While many families were preparing to wind down for the holidays (including the Footprint Project team), tornado sirens rang out in states across the southeastern United States. With at least 88 fatalities, the “Quad-State Super Cell” became the deadliest December tornado event on record in the United States.
Building Back Greener After Ida
Footprint Project has been on the ground in Louisiana since September 3 deploying solar + batteries to communities affected by Hurricane Ida.
Clean Energy Leaders Deploy Solar Equipment for Winter Storm Recovery
In February of 2021, the state of Texas began facing an ongoing crisis of water shortages, power outages, and extreme freezing weather conditions. Two storms- Uri and Shirley, caused record low temperatures reaching -2 degrees F, the coldest Northern Texas has been in 72 years. In response to requests from local responders, Footprint Project activated our Solar Energy Rapid Response Team (SERRT) to support Texas’s recovery. Beginning on February 21st, Footprint Project deployed solar equipment to power mobile communication and remote charging needs for the Information Technology Disaster Resource Center (ITDRC) and Fayette County Emergency Management (FCEM).
Our Response to Tennessee Tornadoes
As COVID-19 began spreading across the United States in the early months of 2020, two devastating EF3 tornadoes hit Nashville and Chattanooga. These tornadoes rendered many neighborhoods and communities without shelter or power.
Puerto Rico Earthquake Deployment
In early January, a swarm of earthquakes began striking off the southern coast of Puerto Rico, crippling centralized power production and leaving thousands displaced from their homes. Footprint Project’s responders were some of the first volunteers to begin relief efforts.
