Mobile Devices in Times of Disasters

When disasters strike, survivors often turn to the tools at their fingertips, like a smartphone or tablet, to look for disaster assistance. Statistics show that in Fiscal Year 2012, more disaster survivors turned to mobile devices to apply for disaster assistance on DisasterAssistance.gov than ever before—21,290 to be exact. With this in mind, the Disaster Assistance Improvement Program (DAIP) teamed up with its development partner, the Department of Labor's Benefits.gov team, to further improve DisasterAssistance.gov access for people on the go.

The team primarily focused on enhancing the mobile user experience through responsive Web design to the point of registration. The site now detects the user's browser resolution and renders the Web page for either desktop or mobile viewing, eliminating the need for a separate mobile website.

On a mobile device, survivors can find disaster assistance on DisasterAssistance.gov that meets their personal needs using new sliding sub menus. With one touch, survivors can access the most important information on the site's new quick links bar and docked footer. DAIP also optimized the site's content, layout and navigation to ensure a consistent experience for survivors visiting DisasterAssistance.gov on their desktop or mobile device.

DAIP also made it easier for survivors to find and sort through frequently asked questions (FAQs) and to peruse the 70-plus forms of assistance (FOAs) through a new expand/collapse functionality. Survivors can now use the site's new Share button to refer others to useful Web pages, with the option of emailing or sharing links on Facebook, Twitter or other social media channels from anywhere on the site. DAIP also rebranded the core site functions—Find Assistance, Apply Online and Check Your Status—on the homepage, providing survivors quick access to the functions they utilize most on DisasterAssistance.gov.

DAIP's successful enhancement with regard to responsive Web design has carved a path for future updates that improve the disaster survivor's experience throughout the entire website. But for now, DAIP asks everyone to be proactive and save DisasterAssistance.gov to your smartphones, tablet devices and desktops to access all the recovery resources the government has to offer before a disaster strikes. Remember, September is preparedness month and this is one simple way to make sure you and your family are ready!