It’s been a little less than six months since Hurricane Sandy, and many NIH grantees are still experiencing the effects of this major disaster. About a month after the storm I traveled to NYU, once with members of my staff, and again with NIH director Francis Collins to survey the damage. As Francis described on his blog, the amount of damage we saw was truly devastating. In light of the severe damages to a number of NIH-supported research programs in the area, we have worked diligently over the past months to put together a plan to assist in the restoration of these programs. With the passage of the Disaster Relief Appropriation Act, of which NIH was part, I am happy to announce the first of several funding opportunities to recover losses to NIH supported research resulting from Sandy.
Using funds appropriated from the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2013, we will offer limited competition awards to grantees in the FEMA-declared Hurricane Sandy major disaster states who suffered significant disruption to their NIH supported programs, to help restore their research and facilities. The first set of programs, announced today, include administrative supplements to current grants for the restoration of lost or damaged research and resources, as well as an opportunity for new or early stage investigators to recover and restore lost pilot data.
In the near future NIH anticipates releasing additional opportunities to further assist these grantees to restore and recover lost or severely damaged research resources. We’ll also publish an NIH Guide notice that provides an overview of all the funding programs related to Hurricane Sandy recovery, and links to the individual funding opportunity announcements for further details, specific requirements, and contact information for each program. Remember also to go to our natural disaster resource page for information on our general responses and activities when an event such as Sandy hits.
I’ve spoken to many scientists affected by this disaster, and their determination and perseverance is truly commendable. I’m hoping that while our grantees and their families work to get their lives on track, we can support them in getting their research back on track as well.
—
Updated 4/30/2013 by the Rock Talk Blog Team:
Additional funding opportunities for Sandy-affected grantees are now available:
- Shared Instrumentation for Hurricane Sandy Disaster Relief
- Restoring Research Resources Lost Due to Hurricane Sandy
- Hazardous Materials Worker Health and Safety Training (U54) Administrative Supplements for Hurricane Sandy Response and Recovery
1 Comments