Urban Forest Strike Team

In the event of declared disaster, we can mobilize and deploy an Urban Forest Strike Team to assess storm damaged trees on public property and rights-of-way to identify risk, recommend removal or pruning mitigation, and qualification for FEMA debris reimbursement.  

Municipalities can become eligible to receive federal financial support through FEMA for debris removal after strike teams complete their assessments and submit their report. 

Urban Forest Strike Team (UFST) is a program supported by the U.S. Forest Service and Southern Group of State Foresters. Once a disaster is declared and initial response is complete, municipalities may request UFST assistance through our Urban & Community Forest Program Leader.  

Strike teams are made up of certified arborists (certified through the International Society of Arboriculture) from our agency and possibly multiple state forestry agencies. Our foresters and arborists are experts in assessing tree health and any possible risks to the public from storm damaged trees. We determine which trees should be removed or pruned to ensure public safety. 

After Hurricane Harvey, we mobilized a strike team to Rockport, Fulton, Refugio, and Victoria. The 10-member team spent several days at each location sizing up the damage to community trees, documenting types of damage, location, and whether the tree posed a risk to the community. The trees were geospatially mapped, and information was provided to the communities. 

Following post-disaster assessments, we can also connect communities with potential partners and other stakeholders to help replant the community forest. Financial assistance may also be available through the TreeCovery Fund.