Emergency Preparedness & Response

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Brookline College, Tempe *

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CJ260

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Computer Science

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Dec 6, 2023

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docx

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Introduction One of the most visible attributes of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the preparedness and response efforts that occur before, during, and after an emergency occurs somewhere within the United States. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is in charge of emergency preparedness and response within the DHS. However, FEMA is not the frontline agency during an emergency. The responsibility for emergency response and recovery begins with first responders at the local and state levels. Ensuring a ready and able response force is vital. It lessens the damages from natural and human-made disasters. Federal Emergency Management Agency Following the threat of nuclear attack during the Cold War, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was created to coordinate disaster relief in 1979 (Martin, 2020). FEMA was tasked with providing emergency relief to civilians that are impacted during a disaster or Presidential Declaration of Emergency (p.23). The types of Presidential Declarations that FEMA responds to are natural, chemical, biological, radiological, bombing, or mass casualty events. These types of events involve FEMA coordination for medical, sheltering, fire management and other critical services. An official disaster declaration is requested by the governor of the state and requires approval from the President of the United States (DHS, 2017). Regions of Responsibility There are 10 geographic regions of responsibility under FEMA, which also has a national headquarters. Each regional office is responsible for disaster relief efforts within its assigned states and territories. Although responsible for overall federal assistance, FEMA is limited by the authorities that govern its operations. Most responsibilities are governed by the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act. This Act was signed into law on November 23, 1988. It created the system that is in place today. In this system, a presidential disaster declaration of an emergency triggers financial and physical assistance and gives FEMA the responsibility for coordinating government-wide relief efforts (FEMA, 2019b). he 10 geographic regions of responsibility under FEMA are shown in the following map:

History of the Federal Emergency Management Agency Throughout its history, FEMA has been plagued by the various approaches to emergency management expected by the agencies that it originally absorbed. Response efforts gained national attention during many emergencies throughout the United States. Examples of such emergencies are the following:  Hurricane Andrew that hit the coast of Florida in 1992  The terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 There was a need for an integrated response to terrorism. As a result, FEMA was incorporated into the DHS under the Homeland Security Act of 2002. Shortly after the integration of federal offices and agencies into the DHS, FEMA was tested again. Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast in August of 2005. Many of the emergency response plans that were in place then at the local, state, and federal levels, specifically in the State of Louisiana, failed. These failures proved that significant changes needed to be made to the structure of the nation's emergency response agencies. There was a need for the following:  Additional training  Coordination among agencies  Increased and improved resources for assistance during an emergency

For FEMA, these changes were the only way to adequately provide individual and public assistance to help the families and communities that were impacted by declared disasters (White et al., 2016). The Select Bipartisan Committee investigated the preparation for and response to Hurricane Katrina of the U.S. House of Representatives extensively. The goal was to determine the cause of such mass failures during this disaster. Their findings were published in a 364-page document, A Failure of Initiative, on February 15, 2006. Introduction In the review of the Hurricane Katrina disaster, the U.S. House of Representatives’ Select Bipartisan Committee stated that the following were some of the primary causes for national failures during Hurricane Katrina (U.S. House of Representatives, 2006): 1 The implementation of the lessons learned from the Hurricane Pam exercise was incomplete. 2 The levees protecting New Orleans were not built for the most severe hurricanes. 3 The failure of complete evacuations led to preventable deaths, great suffering, and further delays in relief. 4 Critical elements of the National Response Plan were executed late, ineffectively, or not at all. 5 Massive communications damage and a failure to adequately plan for alternatives impaired response efforts, command and control, and situational awareness. 6 The DHS and the states were not prepared for this catastrophic event.

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7 Command and control was impaired at all levels, delaying relief. 8 Medical care and evacuations suffered from a lack of advance preparations, inadequate communications, and difficulties coordinating efforts. 9 The collapse of local law enforcement and the lack of effective public communications led to civil unrest and further delayed relief.

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