Superstorm Sandy and Hurricane Katrina raised many questions about the response

Question

Superstorm Sandy and Hurricane Katrina raised many questions about the response of the Federal Government, and more specifically, the response of FEMA to natural disasters. FEMA was criticized for the delay in its response in parts of New York City mainly, the citizens of Long Island. On the basis of you knowledge and understanding of the process of receiving State aid under FEMA and your knowledge about the conditions during Superstorm Sandy, answer the following questions: •Do you think FEMA was ready for a disaster such as Superstorm Sandy? •What were some of the challenges faced by FEMA with regard to its response to Superstorm Sandy? •How do you feel about the evacuation efforts on the part of several hospitals in the wake of Hurricane Sandy? •In the wake of Katrina, how did the relationship between the New Orleans Mayor and the Governor of Louisiana slow the flow of FEMA aid? •Should politics play a role when there is a disaster looming? •List the steps to create a process map showing the various steps required to receive FEMA assistance during an emergency and disaster management (EDM).

Explanation / Answer

•Do you think FEMA was ready for a disaster such as Superstorm Sandy?

The answer to this question is Yes, President Barack Obama declared Sandy a major disaster, which authorized the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to deploy personnel and resources to assist the state in helping the citizens of New Jersey in obtaining shelter, restoring public safety and planning for long-term recovery. More than 40,000 homes and apartments sustained major damage during the storm. With the support of the State of New Jersey, local and emergency officials, the American Red Cross and more than 500 other Volunteer Agencies Active in Disaster, FEMA helped to establish shelters to house the thousands of people unable to return to their homes and take care of their immediate needs. Protection of lives and property was of primary importance. Emergency officials moved rapidly to conduct inspections to expedite the removal of the debris that littered the landscape, obstructing roads, rail lines and waterways and threatening public safety.

•What were some of the challenges faced by FEMA with regard to its response to Superstorm Sandy?

The lack of access to routine services provided by supermarkets, gas stations and pharmacies further burdened a population already struggling with the challenges presented by the disaster. The storm was particularly devastating for families with young children, the elderly and others with access and functional needs.

Repairing vital infrastructure was critical: Power lines were down; cell phone service was out; sewage and transportation systems were out of action and hundreds of homes had been damaged to such a degree that they were in imminent danger of collapse.

Each type of damage required particular expertise. Utility workers from around the nation were called in to assist in securing gas lines, restore electricity and reconnecting communications networks. The storm also disrupted the business community, severely impacting small business owners whose commercial properties were damaged and suffered from the interruption in business operations.

• How do you feel about the evacuation efforts on the part of several hospitals in the wake of Hurricane Sandy?

Sandy prompted the evacuations of thousands of individuals from hospitals. Some facilities in flood prone areas pre-evacuated, but 2 hospitals (Bellevue and NYU Langone) evacuated in the midst of the storm but hospital emergency managers viewed themselves as part of a coalition and acted accordingly (ie, they turned to one another for help). Transferring complex patients at tertiary centers was complicated as such cases were not just simple transport decisions. Utilizing out-of-state ambulances (as was done when FEMA-contracted ambulances were brought in) posed logistical problems because of unfamiliarity with the city and its hospitals. Planning for crucial patients on like those on dialysis was important as pre-evacuation was a less daunting task than real-time evacuation.

• In the wake of Katrina, how did the relationship between the New Orleans Mayor and the Governor of Louisiana slow the flow of FEMA aid?

In New Orleans, those in peril and those in power have pointed the finger squarely at the federal government for the delayed relief effort.But according to some experts when natural disasters strike, it is the primary responsibility of state and local governments and not the federal government to respond.

As Louisiana Governor, Kathleen Blanco, complained in the context of Hurricane Katrina, “No one, it seems, even those at the highest level, seems to be able to break through the bureaucracy. Likely exacerbating FEMA’s over cautiousness further was its reluctance to trust local officials due to the widely-held perception of rampant public-sector corruption in New Orleans (and the state of Louisiana). Unable to determine the credibility of the mayor’s and governor’s claims of need, for instance, FEMA was compelled to wait and gather more information about the accuracy of these claims before acting. It might have also led FEMA to mistrust local officials’ ability to be good stewards of federal (and even their own) disaster relief resources. In this way, state and local public sector corruption may have contributed to FEMA’s delayed response. Both New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin and Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco, for example, initially made claims that thousands or maybe even tens of thousands of people were dead, with hundreds of thousands left trapped in homes. In the end, however, these numbers were gross exaggerations. This ever-present incentive to overstate the demand for resource transfers, in conjunction with the previously mentioned mistrust in the corrupt local public sector officials, likely rendered official requests an unreliable source of information for FEMA.

•Should politics play a role when there is a disaster looming?

After Hurricane Sandy, conservatives and libertarians have begun arguing that the federal government should get out of the business of providing disaster relief. The function could be delegated to states and the private sector, they claim, echoing an argument advanced by Mitt Romney last year, but the private sector and states cannot muster the resources that the federal government can to deal with massive disasters like Sandy and katrina.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, the federal government responded by doling out more than $60 billion in total emergency spending, driven strongly by politics. Part of the problem driving the need for emergency spending is the increasing volume of disaster declarations issued by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) over the past two decades. Each declaration issued by FEMA drains the Disaster Relief Fund (DRF), a fund intended for emergencies that overwhelm state resources. The more declarations issued, the faster the DRF needs replenishing. If FEMA reserved the DRF and its resources for nationally catastrophic disasters, the need for emergency spending would drop significantly.

The pace of FEMA declarations has increased with each new President. President Obama issued more FEMA declarations than President Reagan did in eight and President George H. W. Bush in four years which leads to DRF keeps running out of funds, which in turn leads to requiring emergency appropriations.

Rather politics sholud play a positive role, as beyond politics Americans came together to help family, friends, and neighbors. First responders navigated dangerous conditions to rescue individuals in need. Other citizens answered the call to lend a helping hand. State and local governments took a leading role to prepare their communities for the disaster and mobilize once the storm hit. The American Red Cross initially mobilized more than 1,000 disaster workers in communities up and down the East Coast. Local Red Cross chapters provided shelters for those in need of housing. Meanwhile, the Salvation Army deployed dozens of mobile feeding units in seven states to serve thousands of meals. The organization worked with local emergency management officials to determine where help was needed most. In addition to the Red Cross and Salvation Army, local faith-based and community organizations played vital roles in the emergency response to Sandy.

•List the steps to create a process map showing the various steps required to receive FEMA assistance during an emergency and disaster management (EDM).

The List of steps are as follows:-

Step 1: Register with the Federal Emergency Management Agency:

There are several ways to register:

When applying for aid, you will receive a nine-digit registration number that can be used for reference when corresponding with FEMA.

Keep the following information handy:

Step 2: Receive a property inspection:

Within a few days after registering, eligible applicants will be telephoned to make an appointment to have their damaged property inspected. The inspectors, who are FEMA contractors and carry identification badges, visit to make a record of damage. They do not make a determination regarding assistance. There is no cost for the inspection.

Step 3: All applicants will receive a letter from FEMA regarding the status of their requests for federal assistance.
Some will also receive an application for a low-interest disaster recovery loan from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).

Call FEMA helpline (800-621-3362 or TTY, 800-462-7585).

Those who receive an application packet from the SBA should complete and submit the forms. No one is required to accept a loan but submitting the application may open the door to additional FEMA grants.

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