Introduction to Emergency Management - Research Paper Example

FEMA and State Emergency Agencies Introduction The government in any given country have a role in taking care of the emergency needs of its population. In the recent past, the population are face with the disaster of food shortage, disease outbreaks, fire, nuclear attack and many other complex emergency situations. In times of disaster, many people lose their lives and others have to bear with permanent effects of the calamity depending on the nature of the disaster. The government prepares disaster response agencies that respond to such situation in an effort to mitigate the severe consequences of these disasters. One of the state emergency response agencies includes the Federal Emergency response Agency that was started in 1978 to handle any emergency that occur in the country. FEMA is formed under the umbrella of the Homeland security and has developed to cover not only America but also its surroundings especially in the areas close to its boundaries. Although the body has played its role in emergency response, new challenges and complex emergency situation have become a challenge to handle. In the event of these challenges, there has emerged the need for the reformation of the Emergency response bodies to inject efficiency in their role in the community. The Formation of FEMA FEMA was formed in 1978 and activated in 1979 following a series of government orders. The main reason why FEMA was formed was to oversee the disaster response and recovery functions after the government had noted emergence of a recurring emergencies. For instance, in early 19th century, the government had to deal with a disaster when fires struck in Portsmouth and the resident in this region were in great need of relief and other basic amenities. Since the government did not have any emergency response Agency, the 7th US congress had to pass an order to provide the victims with relief to rescue them from the aftermaths of the fire. In various occasions, the US government has sustained several external attacks leaving many citizens and helps (Fagnoni, 2009). As such, the formation of FEMA was one way to make streamline disaster response and recovery to ensure that any disasters are handled in time to avoid any serious consequences on the public. When FEMA was formed as independent body, it absorbed the Federal insurance, the National Fire Prevention and Control Administration, the weather service community preparedness program and the Federal preparedness agency. FEMA is funded mostly by the government annual budget allocation. FEMA has over 2,600 full time employees who work closely together in time of disaster. In addition, it has over 4, 000 standby employees who are available when back up is need to avoid shortage of service provider during times of extensive disasters. The agency works hand in hand with other emergency response bodies to plan, prepare and respond to emergency situations within the country. The body has opened over 10 regional and two area offices to increase its geographical coverage with America. Since 2003, FEMA has become a department of the Homeland security program that ion total has 23 departments. In its operation, the agency is divided into smaller response teams meant take care of, medical services, mortuary, urban search and mobile agency (Fagnoni, 2009). This specialization allows the organization to remain efficient in handling disasters when they emerge. The Role of FEMA in Disaster Response Disasters are inevitable in any country and the ability for an emergency response agency to predict the nature of disasters that are likely to strike and the various forms of needs that are likely to arise determines the efficiency of their response. In the event of a disaster, there arises a wide range of public needs that the agency must take care of to alleviate the disaster and provide reinstate the victims to their former situations. One crucial role of FEMA is to plan for the disasters and if possible to predict their happenings. For instance, the weather pattern of a given place can promise the nature of disaster that the government agency should anticipate. In areas that are rainy, the agency can plan on the best evacuation plans in times of floods. On the other hand, in places where there is shortage of rain, the agency anticipates hunger and should be prepare to support the family with enough relief (Hylton, 2013). FEMA works hand in hand with other organizations to prepare for both natural and man-made disasters and define ways to prevent them and assist in recovery in case on happens. In this light, FEMA role in disaster response can be broadly categorized into two groups; mitigation and recovery. Fagnoni (2009) defines disaster mitigation as the accurate prediction of a likely disaster and the ability to prevent it before it happens. While some disasters are not predictable and can be prevented way long before they strike. Fagnoni states that this is the most effective method of disaster response. FEMA has launched strategies to investigate possible disasters and prevent them even before they occur. For instance, FEMA has stationed the urban search and Rescue team within town regions to assess the risk of falling buildings and recommend their demolition as they are pending sources of disasters. The mitigation plans the agency to prevent pending disasters and plan for the quickest approaches to disaster responses in times of emergency. Although the agency has been criticised for weak mitigation plans, the agency is committed to improve these responses. Also, FEMA is involved in the response and recovery process in times of a disaster. Recovery is the act of assisting the public to recover from the consequences of the disaster and alleviate their suffering. One the way in which FEMA assists in the recovery process is in provision of food and shelter for those who have lost their homes. For instance, in time of the Andrew Hurricane in 1992, over 25,000 people were left homeless and FEMA had to step in to assist in provision of food, shelter and other basic necessities. In another incident, the Tropical storm struck the East Coast of US causing a damage of about $10 billion, a loss that left most people homeless, unemployed and suffering from serious diseases (Witt, 2009). In this incident, FEMA facilitated the recovery process by providing the victims with low interest loans to help in house construction, provide employment and medical assistance to restore the victims. In other instances, the agency is involved in fire fighting, solving communication problems, providing medical services, search of dead bodies and in restoration of energy systems in times of disasters. To accomplish these tasks, FEMA works along with American Red Cross, department of agriculture and the ministry of energy. In this light, FEMA has been in the upfront both to mitigate and respond to disasters in America. Challenges Facing FEMA and Emergency Response Agencies In its operation, FEMA has faced a number of challenges that have undermined its performance in both its mitigation and response roles. One of the challenges that FEMA faces in inadequacy of resources sufficient to meet the heavy demands in time of large disasters (Skinner, 2011). In times of large disasters such as the Tropic storm, the society needs are far too many and the federal agency has a challenge in meeting these needs. In the tropical storm, properties worth $10 billion were damaged and this was practically impossible for the agency to restore the community. Shortage of funds hinders the agency from providing services such as housing that are demanded in such occasions. As such, the role of FEMA has remained as support and efforts to help the society to recover have been undermined . In the desert storm response, the agency had to provide low interest housing loans as they could not afford to provide free housing for the public. In this light, poor funding is a challenge that continues to undermine the performance of FEMA as well as other emergency response agencies in the United States of America. Another challenge that has emerged in the recent past is the complexity of getting the people aboard the mitigation plan. Predicting the emergence of a disaster is a collaborative process that requires the inclusion of the public in the development of mitigation plan (Skinner, 2011). For effectiveness, FEMA requires to integrate the public in developing plans to mitigate disaster. For instance, in areas such as the Eastern Coasts, the public requires to depend on the weather forecasts in predicting the signs of an encroaching hurricane. However, the people are reluctant in collaborating with the agency and this makes it impossible for the agency to evacuate people long before the strike of a hurricane. The public undermine the effects of a disaster and hence are unwilling to collaborate with the mitigation plans designed to reduce the effects of disaster. One of the major reasons why the public have failed to participate in disaster management plans is lack of knowledge in this field. The duty of educating the public on the need for disaster preparedness is a complex task that requires a lot of finances and demands more staffing. Resultantly, the disaster encroaches the public without their awareness leading to high losses that would have been avoided. Finally, the emergence of complex disasters has become a challenge for all emergency response agencies. In the recent past, there has been a great threat of nuclear disasters, prompting the response agencies to find ways of mitigating such disasters that would cost the lives of millions of people and great damage. In the year 2008, FEMA launched its nuclear mitigation strategy by realising the Planning Guidance for Protection and Recovery Following Radiological Dispersal Device and Improvised Nuclear Device, a program that aimed at nuclear disaster awareness and protecting the public. The efforts of preparing for nuclear disasters have been frustrated by the complexity of the matter. In the advent of new technology, there has evolved small pocket sized nuclear bombs that are hard to detect and the chances of mitigating an attack is almost zero. In planning the recovery process, it has become a challenge as most of the emergency offices are located close to towns and are least likely to survive in the event of a nuclear attack. With the growing fear of terrorism, the inability of the emergency response bodies to come up with mitigation and recovery plan puts the public at great risk of attack. The cumulative impact of the challenges facing FEMA is inefficiency in disaster response in the US. Recommendation in Reformation FEMA Following the challenges that FEMA and other emergency response agencies, there is need reformation of the approach to emergency response. One way that FEMA should streamline its financial abilities is by reducing its dependence on the funding of the federal government. While it is important for the government to increase its funding for the FEMA operations, the agency should focus on different means of funding. It would be recommendable for the agency to involve the public in funding disaster response plans. For instance, the agency should develop social networks and design an effective online presence to collect funds for their projects (Mannix, 2013). If the public makes contributions in terms of finances, clothes and other basic necessities in times of a disaster, it would be possible for the organization to satisfy the victims in better manner. Another recommendation for FEMA is to use a collaborative approach to disaster response. Coppola (2011) recommends that FEMA involves the American Red Cross in their response strategies. Going by the word of Coppola, FEMA should link with other emergency response agencies to develop mitigation and recovery strategies. When such agencies work together, it becomes easier for them to react more promptly to disaster emergencies. One of the reasons why FEMA has been criticized is delay in responding to emergency plans. In the Andrew hurricane, FEMA was blamed for delaying in arriving to rescue the community in time of need. In a collaborative approach, all the agencies would share the burden of the disaster, making it easier to meet the needs of the community easily and more effectively. In addition, the agencies can be able to predict and mitigate disasters more effectively. In this light, it would be crucial for the agencies to come together and collectively approach the disasters that emerge in the US. Conclusion In conclusion, disaster response within a country is one of the vital roles of the government. In US, FEMA works along other bodies to mitigate and respond to disaster emergencies in an effort to reduce the impact of a disaster. Although complex, FEMA has put efforts to prevent the occurrence of disaster in areas that are prone to predictable disasters. Due to the fact that disasters are inevitable, FEMA has put in place numerous response measures to assist the restore the public in the event of a disaster. However, FEMA, just like other emergency response agencies have been frustrated by shortage of income, a fact that has undermined their response to emergency situations. Another challenge that has limited this agency is the unwillingness of the public to participate in disaster prevention programs due to their underestimation of the effects of a disaster. Lastly, complex disasters such as nuclear attack are hard to detect and the logistics of response plan are way complex and more involving. As such, to develop an effective emergency response plan, FEMA needs to find alternatives sources of funds, and to use a collaborative approach to disaster response. Sharing the burden of disaster response will ensure preventive and prompt plans are in place to rescue the victims of disasters. References Coppola, D. P. (2011). Introduction to emergency Management. Burlington, MA: Butterworth Heinemann. Fagnoni, C., (2009). Mass Care in Disasters: FEMA Should Update the Red Cross Role in Catastrophic Events and More Fully Asses Voluntary Organizations Mass Care Responsibilities. London: Diane Publishing. Hylton, R., (2013). Law Enforcement Role in Responding to Disasters. Fema. Retrieved from: < http://www.fema.gov/blog/2013-08-12/law-enforcements-role-responding-disasters> Mannix, I. (2013). Warning centres, emergency warnings and evacuations, part II. National Emergency Response, 26(3), 22. Skinner, R., (2011). Challenges Facing FEMA’s Disaster Contract Management. US Department of Homeland Security. Witt, J., (2009). Federal Role Is Vital When the Need is Great. The New York Times. Read More