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Unit III Essay

Columbia Southern University

Emergency Management

Dr. William Rogerson

2023

Introduction
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The purpose of the paper is to discuss changes made to the United States government

policies in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. It will include a summary of Hurricane Katrina

and discuss how the hurricane contributed to the changes made in federal government policy and

procedures for emergency management to address the deficiencies identified after Hurricane

Katrina. There will be a discussion on what is lacking that prevents these changes from being

beneficial and then a conclusion to the paper.

Hurricane Katrina

Known as the fourth deadliest hurricane and single most catastrophic natural disaster to

occur in the United States, Hurricane Katrina struck the U.S. August 25-29, 2005, setting

damage records throughout Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida, and Alabama (Rubin, 2020). It is

estimated that approximately 1,867 people lost their lives, with the most significant loss of life in

Louisiana, with a total loss of 1,464 people. Mississippi lost two hundred thirty, Florida lost

fourteen, and Alabama lost twenty-four people. Ninety thousand square miles of land and

infrastructure were damaged, costing over eighty-one billion dollars throughout the four states.

Louisiana suffered the most damage with the heavy rainfall causing floodwalls to fail, fifty major

levee breaches, and flooding with depths up to twenty feet in New Orleans (Rubin, 2020).

Roads leading out of the area became congested with traffic and impassable due to

flooding. Rescue personnel were understaffed. The sick and elderly were stranded in care

facilities. Places provided for sheltering, such as the Superdome, had deplorable conditions.

There was no water, food, power, medication, sanitation facilities, or adequate shelter.

The federal and local governments were not prepared for such an event causing this

natural disaster also to be a human catastrophe (Rubin, 2020). Roads leading out of the area

became congested with traffic and then impassable due to flooding. Rescue personnel were
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understaffed. The sick and elderly were stranded in care facilities. Places provided for sheltering,

such as the Superdome, had deplorable conditions. There was no water, food, power, medication,

sanitation facilities, or adequate shelter.

The reason for the inadequacy of the response was due to policy and political constraints

that make disaster management systems a problematic challenge (Gerber, 2007). The Federal

Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), after the terrorist attack on September 1, 2001, was

put under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which diminished FEMA’s capabilities

in dealing with natural disasters. This puts the primary focus and funding on responding to

terrorism (Rubin, 2020).

Changes in Governmental Policy

Driven by the visible failures in response to Hurricane Katrina, the United States

Congress introduced new bills to amend the Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Act with the

Homeland Security Act (Rubin, 2020). On October 4, 2006, congress passed the Post-Katrina

Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006 (PKEMRA). One of the primary goals of the new

act was to reconfigure FEMA and reestablish FEMA’s leadership and resources to manage

catastrophic events and all other hazards.

The PKEMRA amended the Stafford Act to address disaster and transportation assistance

with case management services which are vital in the early stages of recovery from a disaster

(National Institute of Medicine of the National Academies, 2015). It also added to the Stafford

Act a new mission to reunite families by developing a National Emergency Family Registry with

a Locator System and Child Locator Center. The National Advisory Council was established

through the act with a FEMA disability coordinator hired. The act called for the establishment of

the National Disaster Housing Strategy, which was released on January 16, 2009. The strategy to
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address housing needs during the event and the rebuilding of permanent housing include rentals

and focus on the need of the disabled population (National Institute of Medicine of the National

Academies, 2015).

Under the act, FEMA was required to assemble federal and nongovernmental

organizations to develop a National Disaster Recover Strategy (National Institute of Medicine of

the National Academies, 2015). The strategy was to summarize and evaluate the existing

programs after a disaster. President Obama 2009 created a group titled the White Houe Long-

Terrm Disaster Recovery Working Group, whose mission was to develop a strategy to evaluate

the programs. This was accomplished by sponsoring outreach sessions with a web portal that

allowed more than 600 stakeholders to provide thousands of comments. In 2011 the strategy was

renamed to the National Disaster Recovery Framework (NDRF). The new plan specified the

roles and responsibilities of recovery coordinators and stakeholders with guidance for pre- and

post-disaster recovery planning. It was meant to guide the federal government to facilitate an

effective recovery at the local community level (National Institute of Medicine of the National

Academies, 2015).

Although many new laws with great direction were put into place that instituted many

changes, it seems the United States is still not ready for another natural disaster (Rubin, 2020).

No genuine commitment to hazard mitigation has been made. There are no increases in financial

allocation, a shift to pre-disaster investments, or pre-event recovery planning. All of which were

the key contributing factors to the losses during Hurricane Katrina. There have been no changes

to the nation’s critical infrastructure with catastrophic planning or medical preparedness. There is

nothing regarding hazard mitigation or new environmental regulations to address some issues

that can contribute to the damage caused when ecosystems are changed.
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As Rubin (2020) put it this is a waste of a good disaster, as it is business as usual in the

United States. This is deeply concerning as it is only a matter of time before the country suffers

another catastrophic event. To establish effective hazard mitigation with sufficient financial

resources it takes years to develop and acquire the money and resources required to address pre-

and post-event procedures (Rubin, 2020). This must be accomplished on both the federal and

local government level.

FEMA has an active national-level exercise program mandated by PKEMRA (Federal

Emergency Management Agency, 2023). The program is meant to prepare the nation for

disasters of all scopes and sizes. The exercises are based on real-world incidents and include

government employees, private industries, nongovernmental organizations, and individuals.

However, if there is inadequate funding and resources, then the community is just well informed

about the disaster without being capable of adequately preparing and responding.

Conclusion

A government is responsible for helping and aiding its citizens in crises, whether during a

terrorist attack or a natural disaster. Implementing laws and developing plans with changing

government policy is excellent; however, those are just words on paper. The United States needs

to develop a better system that will recognize and learn from its failures in the past and address

them adequately for future events that will supply the financial aid and resources necessary to

prepare and respond to events along with hazard mitigation (Rubin, 2020). This includes

ensuring future generations are taught the lessons learned from the past so they have the

resources, skills, and tools necessary to respond to future events. Until this is done, loss and

devastation will continue to be as bad, if not worse, as new natural disasters arise as the Earth's

climate changes. As Benjamin Franklin stated, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
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References
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Federal Emergency Management Agency (March 31, 2023). National Level Exercise. National

Level Exercise Background. https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/planning-

exercises/nle/background#:~:text=The%20Post%2DKatrina%20Emergency

%20Management,agency's%20role%20in%20emergency%20management.

Gerber, B. J. (2007). Disaster Management in the United States: Examining Key Political and

Policy Challenges. Policy Studies Journal, 35(2), 227–238. https://doi-

org.libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/10.1111/j.1541-0072.2007.00217.x

National Institute of Medicine of the National Academies (2015). National Institute of Medicine

of the National Academies (2015). Health, Resilient, and sustainable Communities After

Disasters. Strategies, Opportunities, and Planning for Recovery. https://viewer-ebscohost-

com.libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/EbscoViewerService/ebook?

an=991080&callbackUrl=https%3a%2f

%2fresearch.ebsco.com&db=e000xna&format=EB&profId=eds&lpid=&ppid=&lang=en

&location=https%3a%2f%2fresearch-ebsco-com.libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu

%2fc%2fiuzu2i%2fresults%3flimiters%3dFT%253AN%252CRV%253AN%252CFC

%253AN%252CFC1%253AN%252CFT1%253AY%26q%3dHealthy%252C

%2520Resilient%252C%2520and%2520Sustainable%2520Communities%2520After

%2520Disasters%253A%2520Strategies%252C%2520Opportunities%252C%2520and

%2520Planning%2520for

%2520Recovery.&isPLink=False&requestContext=&profileIdentifier=iuzu2i&recordId=

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Rubin, C. B. (Ed.). (2020). Emergency management: The American experience (3rd ed.).

Routledge. https://online.vitalsource.com/#/books/9780429756849