Hurricanes Harvey and Irma aren’t the only disasters that have put postal employees on the front lines of relief efforts. “The list” looks at five other disasters that affected U.S. Mail.
1. The 1906 San Francisco earthquake and fire. The Mission Street Post Office was one of the city’s few postal facilities to survive the devastating quake and fire that followed. Employees rescued assets from the damaged sites and accepted mail without postage until stamp sales were possible again.
2. Hurricane Andrew. After the 1992 storm, USPS employees set up temporary Post Offices for customers to pick up Social Security checks, medicine and other vital mail.
3. The “Storm of the Century.” The 1993 superstorm caused many weather hazards, including heavy snowfall, tornadoes and coastal flooding in 26 states. In many areas, USPS interrupted service for several days until conditions improved.
4. 9/11. Four New York City Post Offices closed after the 2001 terrorist attacks, according to the National Postal Museum. Delivery was initially suspended for more than 80,000 New York addresses, and 30,000 delivery points remained affected after most facilities reopened.
5. The 2005 hurricanes. Katrina, Rita, Dennis and Wilma hit the southern United States that year, damaging more than 500 facilities and destroying 17. By year’s end, USPS had processed change-of-address forms from more than 520,000 displaced residents.
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