|
|
Institute for Crisis, Disaster, and Risk Management Crisis and Emergency Management Newsletter Website |
|
| |
December
2005
Volume 9 - Number
3 |
|
On Thursday, October 20th, as part of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee’s investigation into the preparation for and response to Hurricane Katrina, hearings were held where testimony from the first FEMA official in New Orleans before Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast. Marty Bahamonde, a 12-year career FEMA employee, testified before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs on the disregard from FEMA for his request for immediate assistance. Bahamonde was the only FEMA official in New Orleans prior to Hurricane Katrina’s arrival. He provided testimony offering a first-hand account of the horrible conditions in the Superdome, as well as information about his communications between FEMA officials in Washington and outside of New Orleans. Bahamonde stated during his testimony that before, during and after Hurricane Katrina hit, he tired to warn his superiors at FEMA about the devastating impact. Bahamonde expressed concern in regards to the conditions at the Superdome, which was contradictory to statements made by Brown, who claimed that Bahamonde reported to him that the stadium was “well-stocked with food and water for city residents forced to seek shelter there.” Bahamonde testified that he “couldn't have been any more clear to [Brown] that food and water was a desperate situation at the Superdome.” Senator Collins of the committee stated, “This information will help the committee probe many troubling questions such as how exactly did the local, state, and federal governments react during the 16 hours between the report of the break in the levee and the flood waters in the Superdome.” Senator Lieberman added, “Marty Bahamonde’s actions in New Orleans are to be honored. His story is powerful, moving, and troubling, and it raises serious questions that this committee must answer. For example, FEMA had days of notice of Katrina’s ferocity and first hand reports from Mr. Bahamonde about terrible conditions at the Superdome before the storm. So why did it take until Tuesday—a full day after the storm—for FEMA to send emergency response teams to the city?” Senator Lieberman added, “This is among central questions that our committee must answer.” Hearing exhibits include photographs taken by Bahamonde hours after the Hurricane hit New Orleans, which clearly showed a break in the 17th Street Canal levy, and email communications between Bahamonde and other FEMA officials, including former Director Michael Brown . The emails and his testimony illustrate a clear disconnect between what Bahamonde was reporting and the action taken by government officials. Specifically, the emails showed that Bahamonde emailed Brown on August 31 to warn that thousands of New Orleans residents were without food and water and that he estimated that many could die within hours. The next message Bahamonde received from Brown's office was an email from his press secretary to colleagues advising them to allow Brown enough time to eat dinner at one of Baton Rouge's restaurants, which were "getting busy." Five FEMA aides were e-mailed Bahamonde's report of "water flow 'bad' " from the broken levees designed to hold back Lake Pontchartrain. Bahamonde said he called Brown personally after 7 pm to warn that 80 percent of New Orleans was underwater and that he had photographed a 200-foot-wide breach. "FEMA headquarters knew at 11 o'clock. Mike Brown knew at 7 o'clock. Most of FEMA's operational staff knew by 9 o'clock that evening. I don't know where that information went," said Bahamonde. In the end, Bahamonde’s testimony shed a great deal of light upon the situation in New Orleans, from a FEMA aspect. Just as he stated, “I don’t know where that information went.” He alerts all the proper authorities through all the proper channels, however action was not taken. Source: http://hsgac.senate.gov/index.cfm?Fuseaction=PressReleases.Detail&PressRelease_id=1124&Month=10&Year=2005&Affiliation=C |