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58 C O V E R S T O R Y / R A D H I K A O J H A On the cusp of 2019's storm season, industry experts discuss lessons learned from past disasters and how cutting-edge technology is better preparing them to assist homeowners through any future difficulties. In 2017, Hurricanes Harvey and Maria impacted vast swaths of the southern United States, with Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico incurring billions of dollars in damages to homes and infrastructure. According to a recent House Financial Services Committee hearing on the administration of disaster recovery funds, natural disasters combined to cause over $300 billion in direct damages in 2017 alone—a new annual record for the U.S. e California wildfires also raged through that state in 2017. A report by National Public Radio noted that, even as a shortage of construction workers delayed recovery efforts in the aftermath of those fires, some affected homeowners found themselves running out of insurance that provided them with wiggle room to rent while their homes were being rebuilt. ough California lawmakers passed a bill extending insurance for wildfire victims, the report said that it only helps homeowners who are impacted by such a disaster starting in 2019. ese are just some of the challenges facing servicers as they plan for future disasters. However, the industry is keenly aware of the lessons learned from recent years and are working to prepare plans of action to support borrowers through future difficulties. "e most significant lesson is that we are all in this together, and that resilience in the face of disaster is a community effort," said Chris Terzich, SVP, Wells Fargo Enterprise Incident Management. "My previous experience in public-private partnerships led me to participate in a working group of the National Infrastructure Advisory Council, where we recommended the Department of Homeland Security include the private sector in a framework for a partnership for disaster response. I am pleased to report that, in many communities, this is now the norm." e industry is also facing a daunting reality—natural disasters are becoming both more common and more damaging, and it is