August 20, 2011 In September, America will mark the ten year anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and the Eighth Annual National Preparedness Month, an awareness campaign designed to remind all Americans to prepare for catastrophic events, whether the cause is natural or man-made.
Over the next few weeks, Americans will be inundated with information and analysis on progress or the lack there of - the various aspects of government efforts to prepare for, respond to and rebuild communities struck by disaster.
Since Hurricane Katrina slammed the U.S. Gulf Coast on Aug. 29, 2005, one controversial federal agency has become a household name, some describe it as a four letter word - FEMA. Local communities across the country continue to report that FEMA has hindered disaster relief efforts by trying to direct efforts from Washington D.C.
In the field of emergency management, "all disasters are local" with very few extraordinary exceptions such as an asteriod hitting the earth. FEMA is located in Washington, D.C., and when disaster strikes, such as flash floods, fire, power outages, injuries and so on, our first instinct is not to call FEMA or any other federal agency, it is to call 911 to reach local responders.
In 2008, several states including Illinois and Wisconsin reported detailed accounts of conflicts when trying to work with FEMA. Wisconsin's Emergency Management had a number of difficulties utilizing FEMA’s Public Assistance Program for mitigation purposes. Victims affected by the floods in Chicago and other Illinois and Wisconsin towns said they felt the SBA application process was intimidating and/or misleading.
Recent studies reveal that six years after Hurricane Katrina, FEMA “is in a constant state of flux” and needs to better coordinate disaster preparedness efforts with state and local governments, according to the results of an internal investigation by the Department of Homeland Security's Inspector General (IG) in March 2011.
A GAO investigation into a two year pilot in which FEMA recruited 5 states from September 2008 through September 2010, wasted $1.75 million in grant funds. The pilot, known as The Task Force for Emergency Readiness (TFER) to "strengthen state preparedness for catastrophic disasters by facilitating greater capacity in and more comprehensive integration of planning efforts across all levels of government " was a disaster. The GAO concluded that FEMA lacked guidance, did not complete evaluations properly, did not review reports submitted to them by the states or provide feedback. In March 2010, FEMA decided not to continue "TFER" beyond its pilot stage after all of the above resulted in no pilot results to study.
In 2007, FEMA held what was called a "news briefing" on the California fires, but the questions were asked by FEMA staffers not reporters. Apparently, FEMA was desperate for "good press" in which the agency would appear in control and knowledgable, so they staged a press conference where they asked and answered their own questions.
On May 13, 2009 W. Craig Fugate was appointed by President Barack Obama and was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve as the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Fugate inherits not only the recovery mess, but the additional task of trying to repair a severely damaged reputation. Fugate promises the agency will work closely with state and local officials, nonprofit and religious groups, private companies and everyday citizens to respond.
"You can't just look at the federal government" for disaster response, Fugate said. The general public has a greater role to play. said Fugate. "We need to change this methodology that the public are victims, and realize they're survivors and that they oftentimes will contribute to greater success if we incorporate them into the plans and remember who we're working for," he said. "We're working for survivors."
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