If you're in New York and need assistance locating Hurricane Sandy resources or want to volunteer to help, here are some links to get you started:

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo's Website

This site has comprehensive info on applying for FEMA assistance, updates on gas shortages, warming centers and tips for cold weather, transportation (bridges, roads, subways, railways), food assistance, power outage updates, unemployment insurance and more.

http://www.governor.ny.gov/ 

If you're in New Jersey and need assistance locating Hurricane Sandy resources, here are some links to get you started:

NJ 2-1-1 Hurricane Response and Recovery

http://www.nj211.org/hurricane.cfm

"The Role of Government During Natural Disasters" is a cross-post from the IAFF Frontline Blog by Rich Duffy of the Fire Fighters (IAFF).

The devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy across the mid-Atlantic and Northeast is a great example of why we need a centralized federal government that can respond to states and communities in need of disaster relief.  Hurricane Sandy also underscores a very important issue for Americans, and that is what role the federal government should play in during a disaster (man-made or natural).

The National Employment Law Project (NELP) has a new disaster unemployment insurance (DUA) fact sheet for those affected by Hurricane Sandy in the hardest hit counties in New Jersey, New York and Connecticut.  

Read the rest of NELP's DUA fact sheet on its blog. 

In addition, Union Plus Disaster Relief Grants of $500 are available to help participants in the Union Plus Credit Card, Insurance or Mortgage programs who are facing financial hardship because of recent severe weather. Visit www.unionplus.org/sandy.  

The way President Obama and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) have set aside partisan politics to “work in singular and cooperative fashion to relieve the pain and suffering of those whose lives have been turned upside down” by Hurricane Sandy should be an example to elected officials everywhere, including members of Congress, says Sean McGarvey, president of the AFL-CIO Building and Construction Trades Department (BCTD).

President Obama and Governor Christie do not see the victims of this tragedy as 'Democrats' or 'Republicans,' they simply see them as 'Americans' who are in dire need of the assistance and generosity of our government and its people.

Working people up and down the East Coast are pitching in to alert people about the clean up efforts for Hurricane Sandy and provide information for transportation, shelter and other resources. Firefighters, public employees, utility workers, letter carriers, nurses, grocery store employees, hotel workers and others continued to work through the storm to make sure everyone is taken care of. Once again, we’re reminded that work connects us all, and we’re better together. Here are some unions and agencies you can follow on Twitter and Facebook who've been hard at work during the storm: