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FEMA cautioned reporters against taking the index too seriously.

\"Look, I think it was used at a point in time,\" FEMA's Alex Amparo told reporters on a phone briefing. \"There is no official use for it. Our focus is on more empirical data.\"

But a FEMA blog post from last September says: \"If a Waffle House can serve a full menu, they’ve likely got power (or are running on a generator). A limited menu means an area may not have running water or electricity, but there’s gas for the stove to make bacon, eggs, and coffee: exactly what hungry, weary people need.\"

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