Also see below:
Eric Holdeman | Destroying FEMA •
Go to Original
Disasters Keep Coming but FEMA Phased Out
By Eric Holdeman
The Washington Post
Wednesday 31 August 2005
Agency responsible for preparedness absorbed
into homeland security.
Seattle - In the days to come, as the nation copes with the disastrous aftermath
of Hurricane Katrina, we will be reminded how important it is to have a federal
agency capable of dealing with natural catastrophes of this sort. This is an
immense human tragedy, beyond the capabilities of state and local government
to deal with. It requires a national response.
Which makes it all the more difficult to understand why the country's premier
agency for dealing with such events -- FEMA -- is being, in effect, systematically
downgraded and all but dismantled by the Department of Homeland Security.
Apparently homeland security now consists almost entirely of protection against
terrorist acts. How else to explain why the Federal Emergency Management Agency
will no longer be responsible for disaster preparedness?
FEMA was born in 1979, the offspring of a number of federal agencies that had
been functioning in an independent and uncoordinated manner to protect the country
against natural disasters and nuclear holocaust.
All-Hazards Preparedness
The creation of the federal agency encouraged states, counties and cities to
convert from their civil defense organizations and to establish emergency management
agencies to do the requisite planning for disasters. Over time, a philosophy
of "all-hazards disaster preparedness" was developed that sought to
conserve resources by producing single plans that were applicable to many types
of events.But it was Hurricane Andrew, which hit Florida in 1992, that really
energized FEMA. The year after that catastrophic storm, President Bill Clinton
appointed James Lee Witt to be director of the agency. Witt reoriented FEMA
from civil defense preparations to a focus on natural disaster preparedness
and disaster mitigation. In an effort to reduce the repeated loss of property
and lives every time a disaster struck, he started a disaster mitigation effort
called "Project Impact." FEMA was elevated to a Cabinet-level agency,
in recognition of its important responsibilities coordinating efforts across
departmental and governmental lines.
Witt fought for federal funding to support the new program. At its height,
only $20 million was allocated to the national effort, but it worked wonders.
One example: When the Nisqually earthquake struck the Puget Sound area on Feb.
28, 2001, homes had been retrofitted for earthquakes and schools were protected
from high-impact structural hazards. Those involved with Project Impact thought
it ironic that the day of that quake was also the day that the then-new president
chose to announce that Project Impact would be discontinued.
The advent of the Bush administration in January 2001 signaled the beginning
of the end for FEMA. The agency's newly appointed leadership showed little interest
in its work or in the missions pursued by Witt. Then came the Sept. 11 attacks
and the creation of the Department of Homeland Security. Soon FEMA was being
absorbed.
Agency's Death Blow
This year it was announced that FEMA is to "officially" lose the
disaster preparedness function that it has had since its creation. The move
is a death blow to an agency that was already on life support. In fact, FEMA
employees have been directed not to become involved in disaster preparedness
functions, since a new directorate (yet to be established) will have that mission.
FEMA will be survived by state and local emergency management offices, which
are confused about how they fit into the national picture. That's because the
focus of the national effort remains terrorism. Those of us in the business
of dealing with emergencies find ourselves with no national leadership. We are
being forced to fend for ourselves, making do with the "homeland security"
mission. Our "all-hazards" approaches have been decimated by the administration's
preoccupation with terrorism.
America may well be hit by another major terrorist attack, and we must be prepared
for that. But I can guarantee you that hurricanes like Katrina, tornadoes, earthquakes,
volcanoes, tsunamis, floods, windstorms, mudslides, power outages, fires and
perhaps a pandemic will have to be dealt with. They are coming for sure, sooner
or later, even as we are weakening our ability to respond to them.
--------
Eric Holdeman is director of the King County, Wash., Office of Emergency Management.
Write him at Eric.Holdeman@Metrokc.gov.
Go to Original
Destroying FEMA
By Eric Holdeman
The Washington Post
Tuesday 30 August 2005
Seattle - In the days to come, as the nation and the people along the Gulf
Coast work to cope with the disastrous aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, we will
be reminded anew, how important it is to have a federal agency capable of dealing
with natural catastrophes of this sort. This is an immense human tragedy, one
that will work hardship on millions of people. It is beyond the capabilities
of state and local government to deal with. It requires a national response.
Which makes it all the more difficult to understand why, at this moment, the
country's premier agency for dealing with such events - FEMA - is being, in
effect, systematically downgraded and all but dismantled by the Department of
Homeland Security.
Apparently homeland security now consists almost entirely of protection against
terrorist acts. How else to explain why the Federal Emergency Management Agency
will no longer be responsible for disaster preparedness? Given our country's
long record of natural disasters, how much sense does this make?
What follows is an obituary for what was once considered the preeminent example
of a federal agency doing good for the American public in times of trouble,
such as the present.
FEMA was born in 1979, the offspring of a number of federal agencies that had
been functioning in an independent and uncoordinated manner to protect the country
against natural disasters and nuclear holocaust. In its early years FEMA grew
and matured, with formal programs being developed to respond to large-scale
disasters and with extensive planning for what is called "continuity of
government."
The creation of the federal agency encouraged states, counties and cities to
convert from their civil defense organizations and also to establish emergency
management agencies to do the requisite planning for disasters. Over time, a
philosophy of "all-hazards disaster preparedness" was developed that
sought to conserve resources by producing single plans that were applicable
to many types of events.
But it was Hurricane Andrew, which hit Florida in 1992, that really energized
FEMA. The year after that catastrophic storm, President Bill Clinton appointed
James Lee Witt to be director of the agency. Witt was the first professional
emergency manager to run the agency. Showing a serious regard for the cost of
natural disasters in both economic impact and lives lost or disrupted, Witt
reoriented FEMA from civil defense preparations to a focus on natural disaster
preparedness and disaster mitigation. In an effort to reduce the repeated loss
of property and lives every time a disaster struck, he started a disaster mitigation
effort called "Project Impact." FEMA was elevated to a Cabinet-level
agency, in recognition of its important responsibilities coordinating efforts
across departmental and governmental lines.
Witt fought for federal funding to support the new program. At its height,
only $20 million was allocated to the national effort, but it worked wonders.
One of the best examples of the impact the program had here in the central Puget
Sound area and in western Washington state was in protecting people at the time
of the Nisqually earthquake on Feb. 28, 2001. Homes had been retrofitted for
earthquakes and schools were protected from high-impact structural hazards.
Those involved with Project Impact thought it ironic that the day of that quake
was also the day that the then-new president chose to announce that Project
Impact would be discontinued.
Indeed, the advent of the Bush administration in January 2001 signaled the
beginning of the end for FEMA. The newly appointed leadership of the agency
showed little interest in its work or in the missions pursued by the departed
Witt. Then came the Sept. 11 attacks and the creation of the Department of Homeland
Security. Soon FEMA was being absorbed into the "homeland security borg."
This year it was announced that FEMA is to "officially" lose the
disaster preparedness function that it has had since its creation. The move
is a death blow to an agency that was already on life support. In fact, FEMA
employees have been directed not to become involved in disaster preparedness
functions, since a new directorate (yet to be established) will have that mission.
FEMA will be survived by state and local emergency management offices, which
are confused about how they fit into the national picture. That's because the
focus of the national effort remains terrorism, even if the Department of Homeland
Security still talks about "all-hazards preparedness." Those of us
in the business of dealing with emergencies find ourselves with no national
leadership and no mentors. We are being forced to fend for ourselves, making
do with the "homeland security" mission. Our "all-hazards"
approaches have been decimated by the administration's preoccupation with terrorism.
To be sure, America may well be hit by another major terrorist attack, and
we must be prepared for such an event. But I can guarantee you that hurricanes
like the one that ripped into Louisiana and Mississippi yesterday, along with
tornadoes, earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis, floods, windstorms, mudslides,
power outages, fires and perhaps a pandemic flu will have to be dealt with on
a weekly and daily basis throughout this country. They are coming for sure,
sooner or later, even as we are, to an unconscionable degree, weakening our
ability to respond to them.
--------
The writer is director of the King County, Wash., Office of Emergency Management.
-------
Jump to today's TO Features:
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. t r u t h o u t has no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of this article nor is t r u t h o u t endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
"Go to Original" links are provided as a convenience to our readers and allow for verification of authenticity. However, as originating pages are often updated by their originating host sites, the versions posted on TO may not match the versions our readers view when clicking the "Go to Original" links.
Print This Story
E-mail This Story