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[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1376 Engrossed in House (EH)]

                In the House of Representatives, U. S.,

                                                    September 24, 2008.
Whereas the Okeechobee Hurricane, also known as Hurricane San Felipe Segundo, 
        formed in the Atlantic Ocean, traveled through the Caribbean Sea, and up 
        the eastern coast of the United States between September 10 and 
        September 20, 1928;
Whereas on September 16, 1928, the Okeechobee Hurricane made landfall in the 
        continental United States at Palm Beach County, Florida, and proceeded 
        north over Lake Okeechobee, after which it decreased steadily in 
        intensity before dying in Ontario, Canada;
Whereas the Okeechobee Hurricane attained the highest classification of Category 
        5 for tropical cyclone intensity on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale, 
        with winds exceeding 160 miles per hour;
Whereas the Okeechobee Hurrcane is officially recognized by the National Oceanic 
        and Atmospheric Administration as the second deadliest hurricane on 
        record in United States history, exacting the tragic loss of 
        approximately 3,000 lives in the United States and its territories;
Whereas approximately 75 percent of fatalities from the Okeechobee Hurricane in 
        the United States were migrant farm workers, the vast majority of which 
        were African-American;
Whereas the extensive impact of the Okeechobee Hurricane on African-American 
        migrant workers in southern and central Florida was memorialized in the 
        famous 1937 literary work of Zora Neale Hurston, Their Eyes Were 
        Watching God;
Whereas the Okeechobee Hurricane exacted horrendous damage valued at over 
        $16,000,000,000, adjusted for inflation, to the infrastructure and towns 
        of western Palm Beach County alone;
Whereas many of those killed by the Okeechobee Hurricane in southern Florida 
        were buried in segregated mass graves, such as the more than 670 
        African-American victims in a mass grave in West Palm Beach;
Whereas the Nation and the State of Florida have taken steps to respond to the 
        Okeechobee Hurricane and other storm events with the construction of 
        storm damage reduction projects to mitigate the loss of life and 
        property;
Whereas the Herbert Hoover Dike's system surrounding Lake Okeechobee consists of 
        143 miles of levee with 19 culverts, hurricane gates, and other water 
        control structures that provide flood and storm damage reduction and 
        other water control benefits;
Whereas on November 2, 2007, the Army Corps of Engineers Dam Safety Action 
        Classification External Peer Review Panel designated the Herbert Hoover 
        Dike with Class I designation of ``urgent and compelling,'' the highest 
        risk category;
Whereas a breach of the Herbert Hoover Dike or similarly designated structures 
        throughout the Nation could potentially cause catastrophic loss of life 
        and poses grave economic and environmental consequences to the 
        surrounding communities; and
Whereas economically disadvantaged and migrant communities are at increased risk 
        for extensive damage and loss of life associated with natural disasters: 
        Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) memorializes the tragic loss of approximately 3,000 lives in the 
        United States and its territories due to the Okeechobee Hurricane of 
        1928;
            (2) recognizes the enduring importance of hurricane preparedness 
        measures, enhanced evacuation, emergency plans, and disaster response 
        training especially in economically disadvantaged communities to prevent 
        a disproportionate impact of natural disasters and disparities in 
        disaster response;
            (3) recognizes the role of relevant Federal agencies, research 
        institutes, universities, and disaster response organizations in 
        providing intensity forecasting, long-range projections of hurricane 
        activity, emergency management, and hurricane and storm damage reduction 
        to better prepare for, respond to, and mitigate the extensive loss of 
        life and devastating impacts of hurricanes and storms;
            (4) fully supports initiatives to enhance our understanding of storm 
        impacts on physical structures, including water management systems and 
        other infrastructure that may be vulnerable to the most intense of 
        storms;
            (5) urges the State of Florida and local governments to--
                    (A) commemorate and memorialize the 80th anniversary of the 
                Okeechobee Hurricane of 1928 and its associated tragic loss of 
                approximately 3,000 lives in the United States and its 
                territories; and
                    (B) appropriately recognize mass graves of the victims of 
                the Okeechobee Hurricane;
            (6) urges the Federal government, and State and local governments, 
        to--
                    (A) take appropriate actions to encourage hurricane and 
                disaster preparedness, education, response, and mitigation; and
                    (B) support programs and initiatives that promote disaster 
                preparedness, education, response, and mitigation especially in 
                economically disadvantaged and migrant communities;
            (7) commends the Army Corps of Engineers for its ongoing 
        rehabilitation of the Herbert Hoover Dike and encourages continued 
        collaboration among Federal, State, and local governments toward 
        expeditious completion of the rehabilitation effort; and
            (8) recommits itself to hurricane preparedness, safety education, 
        response, and mitigation for all communities in the 110th Congress.
            Attest:

                                                                          Clerk.
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