TheFederal Emergency Management Agency(FEMA ) has been around since 1979 . Although much of FEMA ’s late jam has been minus , the agency has been a muscular force in helping Americans develop for , deal out with , and recover from some of the bad disasters in chronicle . Fromhurricanesandearthquakestonuclear powerplant meltdowns and toxic contamination , FEMA has been there to serve people in incertain billet .
In this article , we ’ll find out what FEMA does , how it maneuver and how it has change . We ’ll also review FEMA ’s response to Hurricane Katrina and other disaster .
FEMA Responsibilities
Prior to 1979 , disaster direction in the United States was a patchwork of on - the - spot legislation , local , state and federal agencies and volunteer groups . TheU.S. Army Corps of Engineerscontrolled some aspect of calamity palliation , while different government delegacy cater insurance for disaster scathe . Eventually , more than 100 agencies existed to manage with catastrophe , and many of them needlessly duplicated the elbow grease of others .
President Jimmy Carter create FEMA by executive rescript in 1979 , and the novel office absorbed many other delegacy . FEMA accept on a wide range of province that included instinctive disasters and civil denial plans in case of war . In 2003 , FEMA became part of theDepartment of Homeland Security .
FEMA is tasked with palm all potential disasters . This include both instinctive disasters , such as hurricane and earthquake , and man - made one , such as wild sum spills , bombing and war . Although most people associate FEMA with disaster response , the delegacy has put a great business deal of exploit into catastrophe preparation . These formulation admit hurricane - proofing home and assist urban center retrofit buildings to make them safe in the event of an quake . The 2001 Nisqually earthquake in Washington State could have caused far keen destruction if buildings in the area had n’t been retrofitted through FEMA’sProject Impact .
FEMA ply data to rest home and business owners that can facilitate them take steps to prepare for disasters . A comprehensive list of FEMA advice on disaster provision can be foundhere . The inclination let in wintertime drive tips , ways to upgrade and improve homes to keep tempest and temblor damage to a lower limit , and grant programs that can help hoi polloi pay for upgrades .
During the Cold War , much of FEMA ’s effort break down into organise for a atomic attack . Today , terrorism damage mitigation is a key part of FEMA ’s tariff .
In the next section , we ’ll find out how FEMA helps when disaster strikes .
Disaster Relief
In the aftermath of a catastrophe , the great unwashed are will with damaged or destroyed homes , no berth to run , no fare , and destroyed or lost property . Many families must also allot with the bang-up tragedy of all – bruise , missing or utter loved one . FEMA can supply assist in all of these sphere , often in coordination with the Red Cross and other volunteer organizations .
The first step in catastrophe assist is setting up care centers to provide for basic requirements of the victims – food for thought , urine , shelter and aesculapian caution . Typically , info on the locations of care centers is broadcast on localTVandradiostations .
Once the canonical indigence are taken care of , FEMA can help hoi polloi get back on their feet , find a stead to inhabit , and get reconstruct . When the president declares that the area a major disaster , special aid programs become available . Victims can apply online or by speech sound .
FEMA provides three unlike type of assistance :
Housing
Medical
Property
Next , we ’ll await at the bodily structure of FEMA and the strand of command .
FEMA Jobs and Functions
Prior to the geological formation of theDepartment of Homeland Security(DHS ) , FEMA performed many of its current functions . In the nineties , FEMA was made a cabinet - level agency , and the all - jeopardy bearing of the federal agency was very much in line with overall mother country security mathematical function . However , the 2001 terrorist approach exposed the pauperism for a more comprehensive agency that would also coordinate border security , intelligence and natural law enforcement agencies . Now , FEMA is just one part of the Department of Homeland Security .
FEMA is divided into ten regional berth . These offices work out with the states within their part to align disaster mitigation and response . FEMA employ about 2,600 people full - time nationwide , with a reserve of 4,000 more who stay on standby until a cataclysm strikes .
When a disaster pass ( or prior to it happen , if they have some word of advice ) , FEMA starts working with the strike state’sFederal Coordinating Officer(FCO ) . This person is recommended by FEMA and appointed by the president . A Disaster Field Office is do up near the scene of the disaster – from there , the FCO coordinates easing efforts and works to keep a rate of flow of information to deliver personnel office and political loss leader . Union and nation groups work together to provide the necessary rilievo efforts .
Union catastrophe reliever is divided into 12Emergency Support Functions(ESF ) , each allow for by a unlike agency or agencies . The 12 ESFs are :
ESF 1: Transportation
Provides civilian and military transportation
Lead agency : Department of Transportation
ESF 2: Communications
Provides telecommunications backing
Lead government agency : National Communications System
ESF 3: Public Works and Engineering
reestablish essential public services and adroitness
atomic number 82 bureau : U.S. Army Corps of Engineers , Department of Defense
ESF 4: Fire Fighting
Detects and suppresses wildland , rural and urbanfires
Lead agency : U.S. Forest Service , Department of Agriculture
ESF 5: Information and Planning
Collects , analyzes and disseminates critical information to facilitate the overall federal response and retrieval operations
Lead agency : Federal Emergency Management Agency
ESF 6: Mass Care
Manages and organise food , tax shelter and first aid for victims ; offer bulk distribution of relief supplies ; operates a system to assist kinfolk reunification
lead-in federal agency : American Red Cross
ESF 7: Resource Support
Provides equipment , materials , supplies and personnel office to federal entities during reply operations
Lead agency : General Services Administration
ESF 8: Health and Medical Services
Provides help for public health and aesculapian care needs
Lead delegacy : U.S. Public Health Service , Department of Health and Human Services
ESF 9: Urban Search and Rescue
Locates , extricates and provides initial aesculapian treatment to victims trapped in collapsed structures
wind agency : Federal Emergency Management Agency
ESF 10: Hazardous Materials
Supports federal response to actual or potential tone ending of oil and risky materials
leash means : Environmental Protection Agency
ESF 11: Food
Identifiesfoodneeds ; ensures that solid food gets to area pretend by disaster
wind agency : Food and Nutrition Service , Department of Agriculture
ESF 12: Energy
Restorespowersystems and fuel supplies
Lead bureau : Department of Energy
ESF 13: Public Safety and Security
Provides law enforcement services
atomic number 82 government agency : Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice
ESF 14: Long-Term Community Recovery and Mitigation
enable residential area recovery from the long - terminus consequences of a disaster
Lead agency : Department of Homeland Security / Emergency Preparedness and Response / Federal Emergency Management Agency
ESF 15: External Affairs Annex
Ensures that Federal assets are deploy to the field during incidents require a coordinated Federal response
Lead representation : Department of Homeland Security / Federal Emergency Management Agency
In the next department , we ’ll look at some of the problems with FEMA .
Past Problems
For all the full it does , FEMA is not perfect . There have been problem in the past tense with FEMA disaster reaction , and those problem have become more obvious in the Wake Island of Hurricane Katrina .
Critics say that one of FEMA ’s large trouble is bureaucracy . There are many administrative officials , overlapping land and Union agencies and political agendum . This seems ironical , FEMA was originally constitute to eliminate the redundancies and inefficiencies of past catastrophe direction efforts . The agency can playact very rapidly – sometimes the prexy can make a tragedy announcement within hour . However , requests have also been denied or send back because the right forms were not filled out properly , or a signature was pretermit . Sometimes officials mail request back through the mail , delaying FEMA ’s catastrophe response by day .
Some of the problems may stem from recent change in FEMA ’s constitution , related to the delegacy ’s absorption into the Department of Homeland Security . Prior to this alteration , state and Union functionary would fill , contrive and react to disasters together . FEMA was praised for its reply to disasters like the Oklahoma City bombing and the 1994 Los Angeles earthquake . The Bush organisation has worked to shift province for disaster management from Union agencies to province and local agencies . The governing has drastically cut funding for FEMA as well . In Louisiana , funding for subject area and flood tide prevention efforts in the Lake Pontchartrain area was cut by more than $ 40 million and the Army Corps of Engineers had its budget rationalize by $ 71 million [ ref ] .
FEMA was criticized for poor response times to disasters prior to the Bush administration , such as Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and Hurricane Hugo in 1990 . Some critic think that the character of leadership within the agency continues to factor into its uneven response disc . Presidents have appointed champion to high FEMA positions , but many of these appointees had trivial to no experience in tragedy management . President George W. Bush was accused of this when he name Michael Brown as head of FEMA .
In the next section , we ’ll calculate at problem with the response to Hurricane Katrina .
Hurricane Katrina Response
The post - Katrina finger pointing spend a penny it unmanageable to see who was really to blame for the slow and inadequate response to the Gulf Coast . Ray Nagin , mayor of New Orleans , and Kathleen Blanco , regulator of Louisiana , blamed FEMA and the Union political science . Michael Brown , head of FEMA at the clock time of the disaster , find fault " dysfunctional " Louisiana . Brown resigned not long afterwards . Later it was revealed that he planned to resign before Katrina hit , which Senator Susan M. Collins allege " may explicate in part his curious detachment during the Katrina catastrophe " [ ref ] .
Ultimately , no agency is free from incrimination . Federal budget cuts leave New Orleans vulnerable to a violent storm that everyone knew may hit someday . Local official could have done more to assist empty the great unwashed who were unable to get out themselves , such as the elderly , the ill and the pathetic . FEMA could have been warm to respond . get hold of by Governor Blanco the night the hurricane hitting , President Bush did not respond with prompt aid . According to Newsweek , " there are a routine of footstep Bush could have look at , brusque of a full - musical scale Union coup d’etat , like ordain the military to take over the pitiful and ( by now ) mostly broken pinch communication scheme throughout the region . But the president , who was in San Diego prepare to give a manner of speaking the next day on the state of war in Iraq , went to bottom " [ ref ] .
FEMA could have leave outside bureau to supply economic aid faster . There are numerous level of city official , police force departments and unpaid worker groups who were quick and wait to go to New Orleans to allow for immediate financial aid , but were turned aside by FEMA official for bureaucratic reasons . There ’s really no one person to blame – disaster relief feat seem to have failed from top to bottom .
To memorize more about FEMA and relate matter , check out the links on the next page .
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