AKWESASNE — FEMA Region 2 administrator David Warrington recently visited the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe on May 2 to discuss and review support FEMA provided to the tribe during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

FEMA officials sought feedback from tribal leaders regarding FEMA administrative processes and requirements under the federal COVID-19 emergency declaration, officials say. 

Tribal officials say they also used the meeting as an opportunity to education FEMA representatives on the many facets of Akwesasne culture and history. 

“SRMT Tribal Nation officials thanked FEMA for their assistance and detailed the many ways the funding helped keep Akwesasne, and surrounding communities, safer during the pandemic. FEMA helped SRMT provide several emergency food distributions, supported non-congregate sheltering contracts at local hotels and enabled the SRMT to provide free COVID-19 PCR testing to all community members along with non-member school teachers and employees of local businesses,” tribal officials said in a press release.