| Please pray for and consider those whose lives have been so incredibly
impacted by Hurricane Katrina. Everyone should make some size
contribution to one or more charities working to help them recover.
But also consider other ways to help. Not just in helping those
affected, but also in ways to take this as a time to improve our
country. How do we rise from tragedy to create an even more united
United States of America? How do we plan for the future in a way
that makes us stronger today? How can disaster preparedness &
planning be something that differentiates the USA from all other
countries. We are strong. Let's not just survive, let's thrive
and let's help those in need grow into the full shining beacon that is the
American Dream so their lives see beyond this one period that provided
them with their greatest challenge.
I suppose that every tragedy is bound to be turned into a political
call to arms. The mayor of New Orleans, has gone on a rant about all
that others should be doing while 200 buses in his city were not used to
do any evacuations when the order was given sat under 10 feet of
water.
The governor or Louisiana, Robert Kennedy, jr., Ted Kennedy, Hillary
Clinton, Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, and too many others to name (oh --
let's not forget Sean Penn in from his sinking rescue boat) have decided
to take this tragedy as their opportunity to continue to bash the
President.
So, it is time to examine the facts. See what's
really going on and learn. We can learn what worked and what
didn't. We can also learn a bit about the motivations of those that
are in such a hurry to criticize folks before the rescue efforts to save
lives have even ended. But don't even spend the time to read this
until you have done something yourself to help - a donation, volunteering
some time, or a moment of prayer for those in need.
The
American Thinker - Analysis
Analysis of Finger Pointing & Recriminations in the Wake of
Hurricane Katrina
By Joel Strom 9/5/05
First, let me say that this disaster caused by Katrina
is something that is most difficult to fully comprehend. It is tragic and
terrible and it will be a long time until life ever gets back to anything
close to normalcy for most residents. In fact, many will never return. It
is a time when all of us should be working together
to give aid in any way we can. Of course, not
everyone feels the same way. Sadly, many of the local leaders have turned
to the blame game while their city burns and suffers. There have been
great leaders in the past, and many who have taken the bull by the horns,
worried about blame later. But not in this case.
While I listened to the carping going on today on the weekly
"news" or should I say, opinion, shows, I could not help but go
back to two fairly recent disasters to compare. As most of us know, the
primary responsibility for local and/or state
disasters lies with local government.
This is really taught in Government 101. When LA had its earthquake in
the 90's, could you see Pete Wilson or Dick Riordan turning to DC FIRST,
holding press conferences to blame President Clinton for not responding
quickly enough? Of course they did not and got
things moving quite quickly. How
about Rudy in NYC in 2001, he knew exactly where to go, what to do and
they had a disaster plan already in place. And both of these disasters
came COMPLETELY without warning. Many deaths, many homeless, and much
destruction. But they got working right away, followed plans/protocol and
put the people first. These were two examples of how a well-run
local/state government can react to disasters with reasonable speed and
effectiveness.
So what about New Orleans? It sat directly in the line of hurricanes,
imminent diasters that occur every year. The levees were inadequate, the
local Levee Board decided to forego work on the levees and instead build a
casino and a luxury yacht, the Mayor seemed ill-prepared for potential
disaster. They seemingly had no evacuation plan, and if they did, they
certainly did not follow it. They had two days warning, yet no discernible
or effective means of evacuating citizens, even though reports indicate
that neighboring cities managed to evacuate many. Yet, the Mayor and
Governor seem to absolve themselves of any responsibility, choosing to
begin the usual political blame game.
While most of you know that management, amelioration or prevention of
local disasters is the primary responsbility of local government
(Government 101), I looked at the City Charter of New Orleans, sent to me
by a good friend, and attached it to this e-mail. In case you cannot open
it, here it is embedded below without higlights:
As established by the City of New Orleans Charter, the government has
jurisdiction and responsibility in disaster response. City government
shall coordinate its efforts through the Office of Emergency Preparedness.
The city document also makes clear that decisions involving a proper
and orderly evacuation lie with the governor, mayor and local authorities.
Nowhere is the president or federal government even mentioned:
The authority to order the evacuation of residents threatened by an
approaching hurricane is conferred to the Governor by Louisiana Statute.
The Governor is granted the power to direct and compel the evacuation of
all or part of the population from a stricken or threatened area within
the State, if he deems this action necessary for the preservation of life
or other disaster mitigation, response or recovery. The same power to
order an evacuation conferred upon the Governor is also delegated to each
political subdivision of the State by Executive Order. This authority
empowers the chief elected official of New Orleans, the Mayor of New
Orleans, to order the evacuation of the parish residents threatened by an
approaching hurricane.
It is clear the city also recognized that it would need to move large
portions of its population, and it would need to prepare for such an
eventuality:
The City of New Orleans will utilize all available resources to quickly
and safely evacuate threatened areas. Those evacuated will be directed to
temporary sheltering and feeding facilities as needed. When specific
routes of progress are required, evacuees will be directed to those
routes. Special arrangements will be made to evacuate persons unable to
transport themselves or who require specific life saving assistance.
Additional personnel will be recruited to assist in evacuation procedures
as needed. ...
Evacuation procedures for small scale and localized evacuations are
conducted per the SOPs of the New Orleans Fire Department and the New
Orleans Police Department. However, due to the sheer size and number of
persons to be evacuated, should a major tropical weather system or other
catastrophic event threaten or impact the area, specifically directed long
range planning and coordination of resources and responsibilities efforts
must be undertaken. [You can read New Orleans' Emergency Plan for
hurricanes at its Web site: http://www.cityofno.com/portal.aspx?portal=46&tabid=26]
The city's plan also specifically called for the use of city-owned
buses and school buses to evacuate the population. These were apparently
never deployed, though the Parish of Plaquemines just south of the city
evacuated its population using school buses.
The plan, written well before Katrina was even a teardrop in God's eye,
was obviously never heeded or implemented by local leaders.
The first thing we learn is that too many folks are more
interested in the microphones and providing cover for themselves than they are in uniting in an effort to
save as many lives as possible.
We learn that Sean Penn is no boater -- and is in need of rescue from
himself.
From
Ireland Online... 06/09/2005 - 10:47:20 
Oscar-winning
actor Sean Penn's well-intentioned attempt to save children from the
floods of New Orleans, Louisiana, failed miserably when his decrepit boat
started leaking dangerously.
The Mystic River star, who was desperate to do "whatever I can to
help", reportedly forgot to fix a hole in the rescue vessel, which
promptly started sinking as he furiously scooped water out of the boat
with a plastic cup.
Penn allegedly attracted criticism from onlookers when they saw the boat
was already crammed with Penn's entourage - including a photographer -
before any flood victims climbed onboard.
One onlooker said, "How are you going to get any people in that
thing?"
More to come...
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