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Institute for Crisis, Disaster, and Risk Management Crisis and Emergency Management Newsletter Website |
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March
2006
Volume
10 - Number 2 |
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The US Government Accountability Office (GAO) published preliminary observations regarding preparedness and response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The statement affirms that Hurricane Katrina was one of the largest natural disasters in US history. It recognizes the fact that the response capabilities of federal, state and local agencies were clearly overwhelmed. Unfortunately, GAO also notes that some of their preliminary findings were the same ones identified after Hurricane Andrew in the early 1990s. The statement lays out three key themes: 1) clear and decisive leadership; 2) strong advance planning, training, and exercise programs; 3) capabilities for a catastrophic event. The first theme stresses the importance establishing clear lines of authority and leadership roles and responsibilities prior to a catastrophic event. More specifically, it recommends – as it did after Hurricane Andrew in 1993 – that a single individual be responsible and accountable to the President for overall federal response in the event of a major catastrophe. The report states that neither the DHS Secretary, nor any of his staff, filled this leadership role during Katrina. Although the DHS Secretary did designate a Primary Federal Officer (PFO), this role was unclear across all federal agencies and thus there were multiple chains of command and multiple approaches for granting aid and providing resources. This person must be designated in advance of an event. Secondly, the report states that there must be strong advance planning and the training and exercise programs to test these plans. It is evident, based on the Katrina response, that the nation does not yet have detailed and robust plans that are able to delineate the capabilities required and assistance needed to be coordinated across entities. Planning should also include defining and leveraging military capabilities needed in a major catastrophe as well as the need for and management of the contractor community. Furthermore, the report found that the first responder community did not complete regular training and exercises needed to validate plans and then apply the lessons learned. It is critical to ensure that key officials participate in training and exercises. DHS is the responsible party to ensure that these plans and exercises are implemented with other federal agencies, state, local, and non-governmental entities. Lastly, the report provides examples of key capabilities that are needed during a major catastrophe. The following areas require better plans and resources: Local continuity and rapid restoration of essential government functions Major catastrophic disaster plans should include the military’s capabilities in assessing damage In terms of critical resources, agencies need to plan for and anticipate requirements for goods and services; clearly communicate responsibilities across agencies; and deploy sufficient numbers of personnel Evacuation capabilities must improve to include, for example, evacuating special needs populations Integrating organizational efforts for mass care Additional capability required for effectively managing and deploying volunteers and unsolicited donations Capabilities to immediately restore critical lifelines. The report is located at: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d06365r.pdf |