Preparation and Response to Hurricanes - Research Paper Example

Preparation and Response to Hurricanes Introduction The degree of preparation and response readiness that a community takes when a hurricane strikes can be the crucial factor in determining the lives and property that may be saved when this natural calamity strikes. There are a number of disaster preparedness plans that have been prepared by government entities such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as well as private entities such as the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association (Devaney, 2008). Hurricane response preparedness involves planning, equipping, and training. Hurricanes as natural calamity A hurricane is a tropical cyclone, which is a low pressure system that forms in tropical areas. It is accompanied by thunderstorms and winds in excess of 155 miles per hour. In the Northern Hemisphere hurricanes circulate counter-clockwise near the earth’s surface. In the US, all coastal areas along the Atlantic shoreline and the Gulf of New Mexico are prone to hurricanes, and therefore experience heavy rains lasting from June to November. The peak season for hurricanes is from mid-August to late October (FEMA, 2004b). Knowing the seasonality of hurricanes enables the government and the community to prepare for the likelihood of their occurrence. Hurricanes are classified into five categories, for which the disaster preparedness plan should prepare: Source: FEMA, 2004b, p. 66 The approach of a hurricane is often detected and announced by weather monitoring entities within days of its arrival, and the strength of the typhoon is usually predictable as it approaches although this strength sometimes dissipates approaching landfall (Condon, et al., 2013; Waple, 2005). With the typhoon hurricane scale above, a community should be able to prepare an appropriate response beforehand, but the necessary resources must be readily accessible particularly when damage may be extensive to catastrophic. Below is a picture of a Category 5 hurricane, similar to Katrina (FEMA, 2004b:69) Preparedness and Response The FEMA is a nationwide agency with a disaster response program designed to handle calamities over a wide geographical area. However, mindful that in a disaster community members may be on their own for a period of time due to the size of the area adversely affected, loss of communication, and unpassable roads, they have initiated the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program to support local response capability, and coordinate with state and federal agencies. The local government sponsors CERT training in the community, consisting of 20 hours of instruction on disaster preparedness, fire safety, disaster medical operations, light search and rescue, team organisation, and disaster psychology. (FEMA, 2004). There are a number of steps in the disaster preparedness phase. These include planning, equipping, and training. 1.Planning By their nature, crises situations, particularly natural disasters such as hurricanes, occur suddenly and with little notice, and therefore are difficult to plan for. However, based on knowledge gathered from past experience particularly in areas frequented by hurricanes, certain precautionary measures are identified which would greatly mitigate the adverse effects when hurricanes hit. In a well thought out disaster relief plan, the following vital elements must be specified: (1) Conditions that will activate the plan (2) Chain of command (3) Emergency functions and who will perform them (4) Specific evacuation procedures, including routes and exits (5) Procedures for accounting for personnel, customers and visitors (6) Equipment for personnel Several protective actions for life safety may be taken by local citizens in preparation for hurricanes (FEMA, 2004b): (1) Citizens should secure their property by installing permanent storm shutters as protection for windows. If there are no shutters, then windows should be boarded up with 5/8” marine plywood, cut to fit and ready to install. The use of tape is insufficient to prevent windows from breaking in strong winds. (2) The roof must be securely fastened t the frame structure with straps or additional clips, in order to reduce roof damage. (3) Trees and shrubs surrounding the house should always be well-trimmed. (4) Loose and clogged rain gutters and downspouts should be cleared. (5) Boats should be secured in a safe place and manner. (6) Homeowners should consider building a safe room in the house. An evacuation plan should be in place, due to the need to evacuate under the following conditions (FEMA, 2004b): (1) When directed by local authorities to do so, in which case instructions must be strictly followed. (2) When residents live in a mobile home or temporary structure, because such shelters are particularly hazardous and cannot be secured even when fastened to the ground. (3) When residents live in a high rise building, since hurricane winds are stronger at high rise elevations. (4) When residents live on the coast, or a floodplain, near a river, or on an island waterway. (5) When residents feel they are in danger. The preparedness plan should designate appropriate evacuation centers for people to go to with sufficient time in advance. When evacuation is not possible, citizens should shelter-in by staying indoors in a wind-safe room; if there is none, the residents should stay indoors away from windows and glass doors, close all interior door and brace all external doors securely, close all curtains and blinds, take refuge in a small interior room, closet or hallway, and lie on the floor under a table or other sturdy object (FEMA, 2004b). Aside from an evacuation plan, the local response team should likewise be prepared with the following plans: (1) Crisis Communication Plan, in coordination with media and social networks (2) Hospital Disaster Plan, in coordination with local hospitals, health centers and clinics which should be put on alert and apprised of possible casualties. Health services centers should be sufficiently stocked and staff should be ready and available (Boyd, et al., 2009).. (3) Business Continuity Plan, to ensure that local business which shall be supplying necessary commodities, foodstuffs and supplies could be ready at the soonest possible time after the hurricane (Corey & Deitch, 2011). (4) IT Disaster Recovery Plan, to ascertain that information could be transmitted quickly or at the soonest possible time between the community disaster participants (media, hospital, local government, etc.) and the state and federal government agencies to coordinate relief efforts (Zolkos, 2012). 2. Equipping There are a host of emergency equipment and supplies which are necessary to acquire and have accessible in the advent of a hurricane. Necessarily, there should be a ready and adequate supply of food, potable water, medicines, first aid equipment, and supplies during the pendency of the storm, as well as protective gear for the response team to reduce the threat of hazards. There is also a need for the availability of heavy equipment including excavators, dozers, dump trucks, grapple trucks, and so forth to move heavy debris in case there is a need to free trapped residents in collapsed homes, and to get transportation channels and services immediately functional (e.g., railroad facilities and roads blocked by landslides). The photographs following show how heavy equipment aided in the recovery efforts during storm response projects. The first picture shows railroad tracks being cleared of debris as high as 20 feet, that isolated a town and made it inaccessible. The second picture shows disaster response to a flood event that accompanied a hurricane. The availability of heavy equipment and trained crews to operate them became a necessity to gain access to communities and neighborhoods cut off due to debris and flooding (Hulcher Services, 2014). 3. Training and Exercise As earlier mentioned, FEMA conducts CERT programs to develop local community teams for quick response in the event of any calamity. The importance of such advanced training for local residents fulfils several purposes, namely: (1) Ensure that all worker know what to do in case of an emergency; (2) Practice evacuation plans on a regular basis; and (3) Update plans and procedures based on lessons learned from exercises. Emergency Medical Services (EMS) preplanning is essential, designating the closest centers where casualties may be brought. In the case of Hurricane Sandy in 2012, the EMS was mobilized as early as nine days prior to the storm when National Weather Service computer models showed the hurricane would pass through New Jersey. The EMS plan involved the local, county and state levels, called the Tropical Storm/Hurricane Management Plan for EMS. Since its establishment in 2008, the plan had already been several times employed. It lists a number of standard operating procedures that automatically activate when hurricanes strike, and each time the plan is implemented it is refined to become more effective. In the case of Sandy, two regional EMS staging areas were designated as well as a heli-base for air medical operations. The plan also includes an Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC) which initially requests 75 ambulances from out of state to come to New Jersey and assist with healthcare facility evacuations (Busch, 2013). Assessment of government response (Katrina and Sandy) A community may be systematically prepared for Category 1 and 2 hurricanes, largely due to the resilience of its citizens (Comfort, et al., 2009). However, it is close to impossible for localities to survey Category 4 and 5 without quick and competent assistance from the state and federal governments. Academic studies conducted by Caldwell (2006), Frattaroli (2014), Ge, et al. (2011), and Smith and Sutter (2013) found numerous instances of the inadequacy and outright failure of government response, and that the targets of the emergency response, the citizenry, had unnecessarily suffered particularly during the recovery phase when government bureaucracy slowed down the provision of needed supplies and response to displaced individuals. The local government can facilitate recovery by temporarily relaxing regulations, hiring extra building inspectors, and expedite business facilities to quickly operate, but these only provide temporary relief at best. References Boyd, E., Wolshon, B., & Van Heerden, I. (2009). Risk Communication and Public Response During Evacuations: The New Orleans Experience of Hurricane katrina. Public Performance & Management Review, 32(3), 437-462. Busch, J (2013) ‘A Supersized Storm.’ EMS World, 1 March 2013. Retrieved 28 February 2014 from http://www.emsworld.com/article/10875975/ems-response-to-hurricane-sandy Caldwell, S. L. (2006). Coast Guard: Observations on the Preparation, Response, and Recovery Missions Related to Hurricane Katrina: GAO-06-903. GAO Reports, 1. Comfort, L., Oh, N., & Ertan, G. (2009). The Dynamics of Disaster Recovery: Resilience and Entropy in Hurricane Response Systems 2005–2008. Public Organization Review, 9(4), 309-323. doi:10.1007/s11115-009-0098-3 Condon, A. J., Sheng, Y., & Paramygin, V. A. (2013). Toward High-Resolution, Rapid, Probabilistic Forecasting of the Inundation Threat from Landfalling Hurricanes. Monthly Weather Review, 141(4), 1304-1323. doi:10.1175/MWR-D-12-00149.1 Corey, C. M., & Deitch, E. A. (2011). Factors Affecting Business Recovery Immediately after Hurricane Katrina. Journal Of Contingencies & Crisis Management, 19(3), 169-181. doi:10.1111/j.1468-5973.2011.00642.x Devaney, E. (2008). Hurricane preparedness: Planning and procedures at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida. Journal Of Business Continuity & Emergency Planning, 2(2), 128-137. FEMA (2004a) Are You Ready? An In-depth Guide to Citizen Preparedness. Retrieved 28 February 2014 from http://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/7877 FEMA (2004b) Natural Hazards. Retrieved 28 February 2014 from http://www.fema.gov/media-library-data/20130726-1549-20490-4629/natural_hazards_1.pdf Frattaroli, J. (2014). A State's Duty to Prepare, Warn, and Mitigate Natural Disaster Damages. Boston College International & Comparative Law Review, 37(1), 173-208. Ge, Y., Peacock, W., & Lindell, M. K. (2011). Florida Households' Expected Responses to Hurricane Hazard Mitigation Incentives. Risk Analysis: An International Journal, 31(10), 1676-1691. doi:10.1111/j.1539-6924.2011.01606.x Hulcher Services (2014) ‘Hurricane, Tornado, and Storm Response Services.’ Retrieved 28 February 2014 from http://www.hulcher.com/contractor-services/disaster-response/hurricane-storm-response.asp Smith, D. J., & Sutter, D. (2013). Response and Recovery after the Joplin Tornado. Independent Review, 18(2), 165-188. Waple, A (2005) ‘Hurricane Katrina.’ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Climatic Data Center, Asheville, NC. Retrieved 28 February 2014 from http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/extremeevents/specialreports/Hurricane-Katrina.pdf Zolkos, R. (2012). Web tools, social media evolve to send early warnings; Preparation, response vastly different when Andrew struck. Business Insurance, (33). Read More