Analysis: Hurricane Sandy and Katrina

Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Sandy

Tropical cyclones can badly destroy settlements and structures along the coast. Recent destructive tropical cyclones such as the 2005 Katrina and the Sandy which happened in 2012 affirm that the destruction caused by a land-falling tropical cyclone is not merely dependent on its categorization on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale. The hurricane Sandy of 2012 caused a lot of destruction. Only the hurricane Katrina which happened in 2005 has caused more damage than Sandy. To reduce casualties from such calamities, the public needs to react promptly to any pre-storm decisions made by authorities (Kantha, 2013).

Government's Response to Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina was indeed an out of the ordinary occurrence that brought with it great tragedy. Destroying a vast area of land, approximately 90000 square miles, it is the natural disaster that has caused most destruction in the history of America. Consider the fact that the area covered is the same size as the United Kingdom and you begin to picture the extent of the destruction. Mississippi saw thousands of people left out in the cold after the coastal communities got destroyed. New Orleans experienced devastating floods. The result was that at least 1500 people lost their lives and thousands at the Gulf Coat were left stranded without essential commodities for nearly one week (Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental affairs, 2006).

It is important to note that failure by the government to plan and prepare and also to respond to the storm led to the people suffering longer than they would have had the government been more proactive. The Government's failures were all over the place. There were several contributing factors to these failures. The central ones were:

The government did not pay attention to long-term warnings and they negligently failed to prepare for a disaster that had been forewarned;

The government took inadequate action or came to bad decisions just before the landfall and immediately after;

The systems relied upon by the officials to support response to the disaster failed;

Government officials across all ranks did not provide able leadership (Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, 2006).

Hurricane Katrina was the single largest catastrophe that has befallen America in modern times. According to the Federal disaster declarations that President George W. Bush had signed, the affected area was at least 93,000 square miles and a total of 5 million individuals had been left without power. There are several contributing factors to the Hurricane Katrina disaster notably the lack of preparedness by Americans for a catastrophe of that magnitude as well as the federal government's disappointing failures (Cash, 2014).

Hurricane Katrina brought to light the cracks present in the emergency response mechanisms even after the transformation of the previously influential FEMA which previously reported directly to the president but is now under a different department. Also brought to light was the fact that key federal government leaders did not understand the National Response Plan (NRP) (Cash, 2014).

The disaster showed American citizens that the federal government as well is unprepared to manage some kinds of disasters. It was the first occasion where the new directives at Homeland Security such as the new DHS and National Response Plan and National Incident Management were put to test.

So what made the federal government fail during the Hurricane Katrina disaster? First, FEMA was not independent but was under DHS. This hindered communication between the White House and the officials at the agency. This ensured that information reaching the president was sometimes not entirely accurate but also that information arrived late. Had FEMA been independent, the disastrous result of the Hurricane Katrina could have been avoided. Of course there exist some other factors besides having FEMA being overseen by DHS, but when an effective communication channel is lacking between the White House and FEMA, how would the President be made aware of a catastrophe?

Following the Hurricane Katrina, FEMA has responded to such disasters as the Hurricane Rita, Joplin tornado and Super storm Sandy. None of these disasters has caused as much damage as Hurricane Katrina (Cash, 2014).

Role of Governors in handling Katrina

There have been accusations of personal and political overtones in the handling of the disaster that struck New Orleans in the form of Katrina. According to one of the officials of FEMA, the Governor, Kathleen Blanco was guilty of sending the request for aid and help late in the day. The request, for food, shelter and urgent necessities, he says, was sent only just before the hurricane struck the city; and that too, to the President, George Bush. Even in this reported, delayed request there was no mention of the need for evacuation support. The explanation to this action was explained by an aide by saying that the Governor was under the impression that the local state government was already taking care of the evacuation need and help that was required at the site of destruction (ABC News, 2005).

However, people who are in the know of the action plans that emerge out of such situations assert that in such cases and especially so in the case of natural disasters, the onus is on the local and state governments and not on the federal government to provide for the immediate safety measures. The local government itself states that in the event of such disasters and calamities where evacuation is warranted, New Orleans will be undertaking the responsibility in full to make all possible arrangements with all resources at hand to afford the best possible safety measures. All those stranded and unable to fend for themselves will be provided best possible aid and help. That is the plan that the local government professes in its statement to respond in the face of such occurrences (ABC News, 2005).

However, when Katrina Struck, the city administration was found wanting in its efforts. All the points in the aforementioned plan to respond to calamities were not acted upon when this Hurricane hit New Orleans at its fearsome worst. The public were directed to reach the Superdome and the Convention Centre on their own, even where adequate support systems and amenities were not provided for adequately. What was planned and should have been done or was expected is that the city ought to have its own buses to the distraught and helped the people who were stranded out of the danger zone. (ABC News, 2005). So while both city and state governments were slow to respond, they did finally manage to regain control with the help of the federal government.

Ex-mayor of New Orleans, Ray Nagin states that it was only he who had fully anticipated the impact that the hurricane Katrina was going to have on the citizens and that he took it upon himself to help the residents reach safety, in "Katrina's Secrets: Storms After the Storm." His plans that described the rescue and rehabilitation in the aftermath of the hurricane happened had mysteriously disappeared. In a damaging statement Nagin accuses of deferring the decision to his request of rescue operations because of political animosity. Ray had sided with Blanco's opponent during her run for the Governorship. He also goes on to say that she had a running feud with the president himself; there was, he says, an ongoing power struggle between the two at the time the disaster struck New Orleans (Associated Press, 2011).

The riposte of the governor to this alleged political vendetta was answered by calling it a false accusation that arose out of the frustration that Ray carried. He had chosen to do it alone and in the process had isolated himself from the machinery and the powers-that-be. She retorted by saying that she could not believe that such a ridiculous statement that amounts to saying that relief operations weren't carried out of political considerations can even be suggested by him. It is false sense of pride that is making him dream up excuses as to why he was not there when he was needed most. He had isolated himself. He chose not to communicate. He did not make any statement for days after the incident. He is making only a belated statement out of sheer frustration (Associated Press, 2011).

Hurricane Sandy and Government's Response

Hurricane Sandy caused the second largest amount of damage in America's history. Sandy, as per the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Hurricane Center, was the single biggest storm of that kind to ever hit the East Coast. The effect was felt across many sectors in the region. Telecommunications as well as data access was halted thus affecting several businesses and people. The storm paralyzed the economy of the greater New York Metropolis (Hurricane Sandy - Rebuilding Strategy, 2013).

Hurricane Sandy hit the East Coast, causing major destruction in areas with dense populations such as New York, Connecticut and New Jersey. The storm was characterized by storm surges, heavy rains and strong winds. Millions lost power, roads got flooded thus restricting transport options and several people numbering in the thousands looked for temporary shelter. Their businesses and homes had been destroyed. Almost 160 individuals died in Hurricane Sandy and several of the affected communities are still reconstructing their lives.

Drawing from experiences during the Hurricane Katrina, the federal government which was led by FEMA started placing assets and staff in the areas where the storm was predicted to hit way before the storm landed. FEMA worked with other state agencies to coordinate emergency response (Ladislaw & Sanok, 2013).

Federal and some NGOs were already working in New Jersey and New York region on October 26, which was 3 days before the storm made a landfall in the area. They were preparing for the storms impact and also prepared an elaborate response to the disaster. On that same day, the president held the 15 first meetings related to Sandy with those who were representing FEMA, U.S. Department of Homeland Security and NOAA's National Hurricane Center. They discussed how the government and various agencies were preparing for the storm. The president did approve emergency declarations pegged on the Robert T. Stafford Act for Maryland, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, the District of Columbia and Massachusetts. This ensured that federal resources were availed to help save lives and property and also to boost health and safety of the public. I500 personnel from FEMA were also deployed to the East Coast before the Sandy made a landfall in order to ensure adequate preparedness (Hurricane Sandy - Rebuilding Strategy, 2013).

The states also started preparing for response, recovery needs and relief. They leveraged their connections with the private sector, philanthropic organizations, media and other key organizations to help communicate with citizens and businesspeople and also to resource for first responders and the needed staff and workers. Public - private partnerships, volunteer organizations and disaster grants were a very important element in the fast response to the disaster and also in the recovery efforts. Following Hurricane Sandy, the government subsequently made legislative reforms and innovations and also formed crucial public-private partnerships (Ladislaw & Sanok, 2013).

Two critical legislations were signed by President Obama in January 2013. These were the H.R. 41 (Public Law 113 -1) that raised the borrowing cap for FEMA by close to $10 billion as a requirement for emergency as well as the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act (Public Law 113 -2) that availed funding to the tune of $50 billion to help in the rebuilding of areas that were affected by the Hurricane Sandy. A Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force was created in February 2013 and was chaired by Shaun Donovan, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. The task force helped coordinate support from the federal government and worked closely with local communities in the states that were impacted by the storm (Ladislaw & Sanok, 2013).

The task force, in August 2013, released a Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Strategy. It made various recommendations for the affected areas to help in their rebuilding and future preparations for weather disasters. The recommendations made include: giving support to the small businesses and rejuvenating the local economies; increasing the capacity of the local governments to effectively plan for rebuilding and preparations for unexpected future catastrophes; and looking into the challenges of insurance. Also assessed was the issue of hardening energy infrastructure so as to ensure that power cuts and shortages of fuel and how to ensure uninterrupted cellular service. If implemented, the recommendations made would remedy the pressing challenges witnessed during the Hurricane Sandy and other previous catastrophes (Ladislaw & Sanok, 2013).

Role of FEMA (Hurricane Katrina).

Hurricane Katrina was the largest disaster to ever hit the United States and badly affected Louisiana and New Orleans. What resulted was a disorganized response to what was the worst catastrophe since 9/11. Michael D. Brown was the director of FEMA when the storm started. He was an attorney with deep political connections and once ran an organization that served Arabian horse breeders. He lacked experience and actually waited 5 hours after the Hurricane Katrina made a landfall before calling for response. He also professed later that he was unaware of the 15000 victims of the storm that had for days gathered at the New Orleans Convention Center without water or food. Brown did not embrace post 9/11 disaster response mechanisms, even including the 2005 NRP that established Department of Homeland Security as the leader of all federal agencies handling a major disaster (Adamski, Kline & Tyrrel, 2006).

Implementation of NRP in its entirety would have allowed FEMA director to make recommendations for the government to declare Katrina an occurrence of national significance as the hurricane had been seen to be disastrous. This would have let FEMA to avail adequate aid in the affected region even prior the governor requesting help (Adamski, Kline & Tyrrel, 2006).

Director Brown, on the other hand, followed his own approach. He did not send help until states asked for it. His decision ensured FEMA's unpreparedness for the Katrina. DHS secretary eventually removed Brown as director of FEMA and installed David Paulson as the new acting director. This happened two weeks into the Katrina disaster. Elected officials have always criticized FEMA's inefficient response to the Katrina. The agency failed because of its unable leadership, mistakes that were made at various ranks of government and the agency's clear lack of knowledge of federal guidelines (Adamski, Kline & Tyrrel, 2006).

Role of FEMA - Hurricane Sandy

FEMA coordinated a multi-faceted response to the Hurricane Sandy disaster. The response was integrated and involved all government levels, nonprofit organizations, individuals and communities (FEMA, 2013).

FEMA per-positioned various commodities and assets, put up response centers and sent more than 900 personnel before the storm started. In its initial response, they coordinated with concerned partners to avail federal resources and to come up with solutions that would help in restoration of power, transport, distribution of fuel and provision of housing needs. The work between FEMA and these partners continued even after the beginning of recovery efforts. The deployment of personnel during the Hurricane Katrina was the largest in FEMA's history and the Agency delivered housing assistance valued at over $1.2 billion to at least 174,000 people who survived and availed $800 million to be used in the removal of debris and the restoration of infrastructure (FEMA, 2013).

Lessons to learn from Hurricane Sandy

It was hard delivering relief to the elderly and the people with disabilities in New York City Public housing. There should be a policy reform aimed at setting the responsibilities that the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) as well as the City of New York have towards providing help to residents of public housing. Non-profit organizations took over the assistance of the challenged individuals since NYCHA had not put in place any measures to reach them (National Center for disaster preparedness, 2012).

Several environmental health risks were generated by Hurricane Sandy. Fire and storm surge were the immediate risks. Drowning was the commonest killer in New York metropolis. Lose of power caused failures of a number of systems such as elevators, heating and life support and these caused serious problems for people especially those residing in high rise apartments. The elderly and the sick were adversely affected. Long-term threats such as the reduction in quality of water and air were also posed. Environmental health risks are correlative and their combination can be a serious risk to public health especially when there is a disaster (National Center for disaster preparedness, 2012).

The Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans taught us many lessons and such lessons were implemented in Hospitals in New York City. Generators were moved to higher floors, detailed plans for evacuation and emergency were laid out and concrete walls were built to protect the fuel pumps which could not be moved from the basements due to building regulations. New York City Hospitals were still not prepared for the massive storm surge and the resultant demanding evacuations. Lacking in the whole plan was clear criteria which could guide evacuations and adequate disaster drills and infrastructure which could have heightened efficiency. To remedy this, healthcare players should have integral plans that covers the whole emergency response framework and system and also involves local and regional partners (National Center for disaster preparedness, 2012).