Katrina and Homeland Security
On September 1, Rachel Maddow did an extensive interview with the first Secretary of Homeland Security, Tom Ridge. The total interview was 31 minutes long and discussed Mr. Ridge’s newly published book, The Test of Our Times.
The second segment of the interview focused on the Department of Homeland Security and how much blame it took over the Hurricane Katrina disaster response in New Orleans. It’s an excellent, frank discussion. Here is the 6 minute segment:
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Where did so much go so wrong? Mr. Ridge says failure of government at all levels: local, state, and federal. I have to agree, except for one point. When the disaster area was declared before Katrina hit, the Stafford Act went into effect (and was retroactive 24 hours), and the feds were in charge of everything, including evacuations and taking care of those stranded. All levels of government failed, but the federal government was responsible for it.
Katrina was in the Gulf of Mexico headed our way the entire week before it hit, and Louisiana government was mostly ignoring it. Then all of a sudden on the night of August 27, 2005 Governor Blanco ordered an emergency evacuation of New Orleans, and much of the central Gulf coast was also evacuated. Katrina made landfall in the early morning of August 29, 2005. That was about a 36 hour window, not nearly enough time. Evacuations should have been ordered and handled at least by Thursday, August 26.
Even though a catastrophic hurricane simulation (Hurricane Pam) had been done prior to Katrina, effective plans to handle such a situation better were not learned or were not made into concrete procedures to follow when such a disaster happened. There was such a long list of things that went wrong that I hope we are still going over it and making better plans with better procedures for the future.
Baton Rouge is recovering from Hurricane Gustav faster, and there was less suffering in the direct aftermath of the storm because of many lessons learned from Katrina by Governor Bobby Jindal. One of Governor Jindal’s first tasks in office was to study the failed Katrina response and coordinate state and local agencies to work in full cooperation with each other and with FEMA to respond to a major hurricane or other natural disaster.
We found that the people in charge of the local response need to be persons from state and local government. FEMA is a support agency, not the leader. The state and local government officials must lead all response efforts and bring in federal help as needed. Ike’s response was poor in Texas because the state and local governments didn’t take the reigns to lead.
There is still a lot to do after Gustav, a year later, as is evidenced by the large number of blue roofs that are still everywhere. But far fewer people were homeless, only a few people were killed, and ice, food and supplies were distributed extremely effectively after the storm until most grocery stores were open again, about 10 days after the storm.
In Baton Rouge, we also didn’t have to deal with storm surge, though we were hammered with wind and rain. Southern Parishes that suffered storm surge are taking much longer to recover completely. Initial response was faster, however. Their water, sewer and electrical systems were restored far faster than New Orleans, even though their systems are much farther apart and with fewer centralized stations that could bring a lot of people back online quickly.
The emergency food stamp program was a major problem after Gustav, but improvements are being made with it as well. Now you can pre-register for benefits when hurricane season begins so obtaining benefits will be faster and less complicated for those who will qualify in the event of a storm. The emergency program is for those who don’t normally qualify for food stamps but will need them if their income is interrupted or they lose a lot of food due to power outages.
The discussion on what went wrong after Katrina will continue for a very long time, and will be a big history lesson after our lifetime. It needs to continue with the people who can effect the changes that will save lives and reduce or eliminate suffering, especially in New Orleans. New Orleans is an unusual city because it is below sea level and water that goes into it must be pumped out. Levees hold back the water as well. When any of those systems fail, New Orleans suffers a catastrophe of Biblical proportions.
Mr. Ridge’s proposal of regional centers for FEMA is a good one that could coordinate with state and local governments far more effectively than at present. Even though lessons were and are being learned after Katrina, when will everyone in the country be prepared for emergencies that effect large populations? Snow storms in winter are serious as well, and our infrastructure is failing in such a way that many people go without power for weeks. On top of natural disasters are the looming threats of large terrorist attacks.
Is the biggest lesson of Katrina that our country’s infrastructure has been neglected far too long in all areas? Is the way our government is organized and how it communicates with its sovereign states a major roadblock to mitigating disasters? Are there really ways to keep a society together and organized in the face of a horrific disruption of normal life? If there are, what are they and how do we make sure everyone is properly informed and prepared? I think all were significant contributors to the disastrous aftermath of Katrina.
Posted on September 6th, 2009 by Sherri
Filed under: Lessons & Analysis, Videos
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