Events Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Events - Essay Example Often the military or the paramedics would step in and, with the aid of volunteers, deal with the situation on an ad-hoc basis. But the disorganized and unsystematic nature of these efforts would lead to less than satisfactory response to the event. It is only in recent decades that organized and exclusive government agencies were set up to prevent and manage unexpected emergencies. It is with the formation of FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) in 1979 that the nation had a separate government body for tackling emergencies. Prior to that, even in the three decades following the Second World War, the approach to emergency events was piecemeal and loosely coordinated. But, despite empowering FEMA with necessary discretionary powers during crisis situations, as well as providing it with sufficient funds for garnering resources, the agency has not lived up to expectations. In more than three decades of FEMA’s existence, the nation has seen a fair share of natural disasters . But often FEMA has been found wanting in its competence and execution of prediction, prevention and relief operations. Two events in particular stand out as great lessons for the agency - Hurricane Andrew of 1992 and Hurricane Katrina of 2005. These two events exposed the state of emergency management in the United States. They played a significant role in shaping the field of Emergency Management subsequent to the event. Remedial measures were taken to restructure related agencies and personnel teams based on the failures experienced during the two events. Hurricane Andrew hit the South Eastern coast of the United States (in particular the states of Florida and Louisiana) in August of 1992. Powerful gale storms above the speed of 170 miles per hour caused havoc in the region. It uprooted hundreds of trees, threw astray public facilities, disrupted telecommunication, made public transportation unviable and most importantly, displaced tens of thousands of people from their homes. I n the aftermath of the hurricane, a quarter of a million citizens were left homeless. Their houses were either destroyed by the hurricane or left inundated by flooding. FEMA was criticized from all angles for failing to anticipate the intensity of the hurricane as well as being able to evacuate vulnerable communities to safer places in advance. It eventually took the arrival of battalions of soldiers from the National Guard to partially bring the situation under control. The National Academy of Public Administration prepared a detailed report on the event titled ‘Coping with Catastrophe’. This report outlined various shortcomings of FEMA and the manner in which it went about its designated work. One of the outcomes of this inquiry is the creation of the Emergency Preparedness and Response Directorate. Yet, these adjustments would prove to be inadequate, as the disasters surrounding Hurricane Katrina of 2005 would show. Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast region of the United States in August 2005. FEMA’s anticipation of the onset of the hurricane was fairly accurate, and it positioned response personnel in the vulnerable regions ahead of time. But where FEMA erred is in not empowering the personnel with resources and direct access to the affected population. The inadequacy of the response personnel was proven by the fact that within three days of the onset of the Hurricane, the National Guard troops were once again pressed into service. New Orleans