White House Author

Lou Casciano joined the Hoboken Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) in April 2010 and during his tenure was instrumental in managing the response to Hurricane Irene which led to his appointment as CERT Coordinator in June 2012. In this new role, Lou recognized the need to plan for the next incident. His techniques proved invaluable when Hoboken experienced the significant effects of Superstorm Sandy just one year later, including: (i) identifying and training key volunteer leaders to help manage the influx of 5,000 volunteers; (ii) identifying and recruiting doctors, pharmacists and nurse practitioners; (iii) opening Hoboken High School to accept and distribute more than 23,000 Meals Ready to Eat, and tens of thousands of donations from around the country; (iv) managing and supplying six Points of Distribution throughout the City; and (v) manning the Emergency Operations Center throughout the entire 14-day tour. In August 2013, Lou was appointed as Operations and Training Officer for the Office of Emergency Management with the City of Hoboken.