Hurricane Katrina Research Papers

Hurricane Katrina. The World Trade Center Attacks on 9/11/01. Daily responses to critical incidents across the nation. Each of these things is a unique incident, in itself, but they all have something in common: those responding to incidents like these need to have a plan in order to be successful. Benjamin Franklin has been credited with saying, "by failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail. ” A good, organized plan can often mean the difference between failure and success, or even life and death. A thorough, organized plan is good, but a plan that is adaptable to almost any emergency situation is something that will be used more regularly and therefore be more likely to succeed when the time comes. Major organizations, cities, even
Other times, emergencies come without any warning, like a terrorist attack. In any case, once the emergency has begun, it is time for responders to act. ICS helps responding agencies perform in a coordinated and effective manner. This response ranges from the initial response to the emergency, adjustments during the days after the initial response, and the on-going coordination of efforts, resources, and supplies well after the initial portion of the response. The plan helps federal, state, local, and tribal agencies work together smoothly and with an extensive list of other agencies that depends on the severity and circumstances of the situation at hand. “ICS is the combination of facilities, equipment, personnel, procedures, and communications operating within a common organizational structure, designed to aid in the management of resources during incidents. It is used for all kinds of emergencies and is applicable to small as well as large and complex incidents. ” With the use of ICS during an emergency response, plans are developed, implemented, reviewed, and rewritten as necessary to get the mission completed in a safe and efficient manner. NIMS and ICS both help administrators to identify, categorize, deploy, and maintain the personnel and resources needed to accomplish the
This plan needs to be flexible and applicable to many diverse types of situations to help coordinate and facilitate the proper response to different emergencies. Law enforcement teams and military units have operational orders. Companies and cities have Emergency Operations Plans. Since the late 70’s federal, state, local, and tribal agencies have ICS. “The Incident Command System (ICS) is a standardized management tool for meeting the demands of small or large emergency or non-emergency situations. It may be used for planned events, natural disasters, and acts of terrorism. ” ICS is comprised of numerous parts including Planning, Operations, Logistics, usually run out of an Emergency Operations Center (EOC). Each EOC is split into different sections, with each section responsible for its own part of the operation (IE: Planning, Operations, Logistics, Administration, and Finance). ICS deals with the “who, what, where, when, why, and how” of emergency response. It starts with preparedness before a major incident. This involves identifying the different types of threats to a community (natural and man-made disasters, terrorist attacks, etc.). In mitigation, agencies work with communities prior to a major incident. These communities often receive training in the proper response to threats. They may also receive help in hardening potential targets of terrorist acts. In responding to