Running head: ANALYSIS AND CRITIQUE OF CATEGORY 5 HURRICANE
RESPONSES
Analysis and Critique of Category 5 Hurricane Response
Madison Carroll
Liberty University
Criminal Justice Student
Author Note
Madison Carroll, Criminal Justice Student, Liberty University
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Madison Carroll 1971 University
Blvd. MSC 113331 Lynchburg, VA 24515. E-mail: mlcarroll@liberty.edu
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ANALYSIS AND CRITIQUE OF CATEGORY 5 HURRICANE RESPONSES
Abstract
Natural disasters are always occurring somewhere in the world. Hurricanes have been
shown to be one of the worst natural disasters to affect the United States. In an effort to combat
the disastrous repercussions of such occurrences, emergency response measurements are created
to assist officials in adequately being able to aid the affected localities. Understanding what goes
into the emergency response phases of mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery is key to
being able to successfully prepare and aid affected areas. Upon understanding each, evaluation
and critiques can then be done on different Category 5 hurricanes that have devastated different
areas. It is important for any government that chooses to implement a measure of emergency
response that there will always be room for improvement. The critiques that are given are given
to further development and simplify processes that may have proven to not work well until the
storm has passed. Hurricanes Andrew, Katrina, Irma, and Maria will be the concentration for the
analysis and critique of emergency response.
Key Words: Hurricane; Emergency Response; Category 5
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ANALYSIS AND CRITIQUE OF CATEGORY 5 HURRICANE RESPONSES
Natural disasters that affect the United States can bring much devastation to the states
that are embodied. The Department of Homeland Security has a department known as the
Federal Emergency Management Association (FEMA) designated to prepare leaders of the
nation and local communities on how to prepare and react to devastating situations. Hurricanes
are one of the most devastating natural occurrences that affects the United States (The Weather
Channel, 2016). Adequate emergency response will determine the success of a localities
mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery.
Emergency Response
Mitigation
Nemeth (2016) describes mitigation, the first of the four emergency response stages, as
an intervention that takes place before a threat or catastrophe can occur. A goal of the mitigation
operation is to lower the loss of life and property for when the discerned threat or catastrophe
ensues. In order for mitigation to be effective, the prevention measures that are put into place
should be built to abet in breaking a disaster cycle. The breaking of a disaster cycle means that
long-term damage and needed reconstruction can be transitioned to a minimum concern versus a
constant one (Nemeth, 2016).
Preparedness
The National Response Framework (NRF) and the National Incident Management
System (NIMS) are two policies created to aid in the preparedness step of emergency response.
The NRF is the educational framework that is used to ensure that local, state, and federal
officials have a strong grasp on appropriate procedures in state of emergencies (FEMA, 2018b).
NIMS is provided to officials as a “template” for any size or type of incident that occurs (FEMA,
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ANALYSIS AND CRITIQUE OF CATEGORY 5 HURRICANE RESPONSES
n.d.). NIMS is built to be combined with the NRF to aid in providing a disciplined response
between local, state, and federal officials (FEMA, n.d.).
Response
The response level is meant to provide “immediate action to save lives, protect property
and the environment, and meet basic human needs.” (Nemeth, 2016, p. 310). It is important for
those in charge of running emergency response operations to understand that the response will
vary based on the conditions that are transpiring. In order for a response effort to be efficiently
carried out, the lowest jurisdiction level should take the lead with support from the higher
jurisdiction levels (Nemeth, 2016). Additionally, for response efforts to be effective, they must
begin directly following the conclusion of the disaster.
Recovery
The recovery stage of emergency response is the final stage, as well as the longest. Time
for a locality or state to recover can span from days to months to even years. In an effort to allow
the recovery phase to run smoothly, the goal of all agencies involved should be unity, particularly
the local ones. Nemeth (2016) has written that “incidents begin and end locally…” (p. 313).
Therefore, while it is not easy for even local agencies to see eye to eye on the best methods to
use, agreement and compromise are essential in order for this phase to be successful.
Additionally, if unity can be found, the time for recovery could even be reduced than if
disagreement was present.
Hurricane Overview
Hurricanes are some of nature’s most powerful forces, especially if they are categorized
as a Category 5 on the Saffir-Simpson Wind Scale (The Weather Channel, 2016). To be classified
as a Category 5 on the Saffir-Simpson Wind Scale, winds must reach speeds of 157 mph or
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ANALYSIS AND CRITIQUE OF CATEGORY 5 HURRICANE RESPONSES
greater. Over the years many of the Category 5 hurricanes that have developed, have done so in
the Southern part of the United States. It is important to note that for a hurricane to be classified
as a Category 5 is a rare occurrence. However, should a Category 5 hurricane develop, it is most
likely to develop in the months of August and September (The Weather Channel, 2016).
Hurricane Andrew
FEMA Response
As the twentieth anniversary of Hurricane Andrew approached in 2012, a PDF document
was released discussing the lessons that were learned in regard to emergency management and
response (FEMA, 2005). It was stated within the documents pages that FEMA is not authorized
to begin coordination of emergency response until a declaration has been made of a major
disaster. One of the mistakes that was made during the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew was that
as the head of federal resource allocation, FEMA failed to give authority to twelve primary
agencies “were not given authority to immediately execute life support missions.” (FEMA,
2005). By FEMA not allowed for these missions to be implemented, the delivery of vital life
support services was significantly delayed (FEMA, 2005).
The New York Times took time to analyze the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew and how it
was handled from a federal standpoint. What was discovered by then as well was that emergency
responses could have been declared by the government on a Monday but was not done until late
that Thursday (Pear, 1992). While President George H. W. Bush stated to the press that he was
satisfied with the results of federal response efforts, individuals from other agencies made known
that there had in fact been a breakdown in both communication and coordination between top
levels of the government (Pear, 1992).
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ANALYSIS AND CRITIQUE OF CATEGORY 5 HURRICANE RESPONSES
President George H. W. Bush had taken the time to fly to Miami following Hurricane
Andrew to inspect the damage on the Monday in question above (Pear, 1992). However,
following this inspection, neither he nor FEMA gave approval for military aid to be given. The
armed forces had been tracking Hurricane Andrew two weeks prior to its impact on the United
States. Due to their tracking, they were well prepared to distribute and allocate the necessary
food, equipment, as well as medical supplies upon Andrew’s impact (Pear, 1992).
Military aid was one of the areas that was delayed in operation (FEMA, 2005). The
military is not allowed to assist in relief efforts until FEMA approves their response effort. When
delay occurs between agencies, a lack of communication between agencies is brought to the
surface. For emergency response to be successful, constant communication should be transpiring
between agencies.
Improvement for the Future
There were many different areas that needed improvement in the running of emergency
response by the federal government. The distributing of medical care by emergency response
was one area that issues were found as well as the execution of emergency response from a
general standpoint (FEMA, 2005). It was concluded that medical care should be provided to not
only the victims of the storm, but also those who are working in emergency response efforts.
Counseling services that are provided by chaplains of the military also discovered that they
should be behaving in a more secular way than spiritual. Military chaplains were requested to
reach out to individuals affected from a secular counseling standpoint. This was in an effort to
not seem thrusting “spirituality” upon individuals in crisis (FEMA, 2005).
The New York Times interviewed Miss Peg Maloy, an agency spokeswoman, regarding
the delay in emergency response (Pear, 1992). Miss Maloy stated to the media that she herself
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had observed a breakdown in communication among the agencies. She also stated that it was not
clear where the breakdown was transpiring at. Major General John C. Heldstab of the United
Sates Army also spoke with the media and said that had a state of emergency been declared on
Monday, as countless agencies have stated it should have been, more supplies could have been
moved in an effort to aid communities impacted by Andrew (Pear, 1992).
Hurricane Katrina
FEMA Response
The FEMA response upon Hurricane Katrina making landfall in New Orleans was as
catastrophic as the storm itself. Since 2002 the federal government had been working to be
adequately prepared for a large-scale catastrophe, similar to the size Hurricane Katrina was, to
hit New Orleans (Chaudhuri, n.d.). A test run of procedures that should be run in a situation such
as Katrina were simulated in June of 2004. These conditions had the town of New Orleans
devastated in its entirety. In the conclusion of the drill more improvements were put into place to
aid in the emergency response of a storm similar to Katrina (Chaudhuri, n.d.).
In anticipation of Hurricane Katrina impacting the town of New Orleans, Governor
Katherine Babineaux Blanco declared a state of emergency on August 26, 2005, three days prior
to impact (Chaudhuri, n.d.). The following day, August 27, Governor Blanco requested that
President Bush declare a state of emergency in anticipation of Katrina’s landfall. President Bush
complied with this request. President’s Bush declaration of a state of emergency allowed FEMA
to begin their organization and mobilization of sources to be distributed and allocated in the
wake of Katrina’s landfall (Chaudhuri, n.d.).
Following the declaration of a state of emergency, a mandatory evacuation was put into
effect on August 27, followed by a mandatory evacuation beginning August 28 (Chaudhuri, n.d.).
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ANALYSIS AND CRITIQUE OF CATEGORY 5 HURRICANE RESPONSES
Due to the delay in mandatory evacuation’s, many residents were unable to evacuate the city. The
result of this problem resulted in the use of the Superdome (Chaudhuri, n.d.).
Upon Hurricane Katrina making a strong landfall on August 29th, FEMA began to
mobilize one thousand Homeland Security workers (Chaudhuri, n.d.). These workers were
mobilized to provide assistance to the city and its residents. FEMA, in an effort to be more
organized, requested that no firefighters or ambulance crews respond to areas hit by Katrina
without mobilization from local or state authorities. This thought in fact slowed down the
response efforts and therefore resulted in overfilling the Superdome (Chaudhuri, n.d.).
Due to FEMA apparent unwilling effort to receive help from other authorities, the
response and recovery phase of emergency management was dramatically slowed (Chaudhuri,
n.d.). First responders from other states were called upon to aid in the response and recovery
efforts due to the lack of FEMA’s organization. In addition to FEMA’s poor organization,
organization of search and rescue efforts were not coordinated between those heading the Civil
and Urban Search and Rescue efforts (Chaudhuri, n.d.).
Improvement for the Future
Many mistakes were made in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Even with proper
preparation, the response efforts drastically lacked organization and communication. The did a
good job in declaring their states of emergency early on. By declaring early on, FEMA was able
to be prepared for dispatch upon the conclusion of Hurricane Katrina’s attack. However, while
FEMA was prepared to disperse supplies and individuals to help in providing aid to the
devastated areas, by cutting off local first responders until an “order” was given to them proved
to be costlier. In the future, it would be wise to utilize the responders that are there and trained to
help in situations such as the one that occurred. While the decision that FEMA made may have
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ANALYSIS AND CRITIQUE OF CATEGORY 5 HURRICANE RESPONSES
not had affects in the dress-rehearsal’s that had been done, they have now observed that their
decision did in fact come with consequences.
Another improvement that can be implemented would be to have a certain number of
days in advance of the storm for evacuation be determined based off of the city’s population. The
amount of people living within the city will impact the travel time out of the city as well as the
gas supply of the local stations. These considerations are critical to the efficient evacuation of a
city in the wake of an incoming storm such as Katrina.
Hurricanes Irma and Maria
In 2017 there were two Category 5 hurricanes almost back to back of each other. These
hurricanes impacted islands off the coast of Florida primarily, but also impacted the United
States Florida and Virginia coast. Under President Donald Trump, in preparation for Hurricane
Irma’s impact, tens of thousands of federal workers were mobilized. Of those numbers, 3,100
were FEMA staff with others continuing to deploy. President Trump utilized both the military
and federal agencies in an effort to help those affected both in the United States and the
Caribbean.
FEMA Response
During the after math of Hurricane Irma, FEMA dispatched approximately 7.2 million
meals, 5.5 million liters of water, and 41 generators were transported to the Southeast of the
United States (FEMA, 2018a). Of those supplies, roughly 578,000 meals, 115,000 liters of water,
13,600 sheeting covers, 150 rolls of blue tarps, and 36 generators were taken to the islands of St.
Thomas and St. John. Puerto Rico also received 36,000 meals and 3,600 liters of water from
FEMA. FEMA has worked to have staging areas prepared with supplies across at least five
different states. Communication to those in affected areas appeared to go well as FEMA
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employees were able to communicate to those individuals when it would be safe for them to
return to their homes. They also had employees available to walk individuals affected through
how to claim disaster assistance from the federal government. The results of FEMA’s proactivity
in this assistance is that almost 250,000 registrations have been filed and roughly $48.8 million
has been allocated to Hurricane Irma survivors (FEMA, 2018a).
FEMA was very active in anticipation of Hurricane Maria making landfall in both the
Caribbean and the Southeastern part of the United States. On September 17 FEMA had the
National Response Coordination Center, a Federal Coordinating Officer and Incident
Management Assistance Team activated and in place as well as other operations (FEMA, 2017).
The following day President Trump issued federal emergency declarations for the U.S Virgin
Islands and Puerto Rico. In a proactive effort, FEMA also prepared two type 1 FEMA urban
Search and Rescue (US&R) teams, two canine teams, one logistics package, and one type 4
US&R team in Puerto Rico. As the storm approaches and makes landfall on both the U.S. Virgin
Islands and Puerto Rico, the measures and teams that FEMA put into effect remain in place until
the storm has passed. Upon the passing of the storm, 3,500 federal officials were in place to
provide support and direction to the local officials. Federal assistance was fully activated for a
little over a week (FEMA, 2017).
As conditions began to improve, sources were slowly pulled back and reallocated
appropriately (FEMA, 2017). Power was restored slowly and access to the runways for incoming
and outgoing flights resumed slowly. Upon being able to, President Trump himself and his First
Lady Melania visited the island of Puerto Rico and met with survivors and government officials.
Military ships continue to bring supplies to victims of Hurricane Maria and distribute the
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necessary amount. In almost a month’s time following Hurricane Maria, federal offices and
transportation slowly begin to function on a “normal” routine again (FEMA, 2017).
Improvement for the Future
The information stated above is proven to be opposite of information that was released by
media outlets. Many media outlets criticized the federal government’s efforts at aiding Puerto
Rico and the Virgin Islands following the major hurricanes. Media outlets made known that
many individuals went hungry and were in need of supplies that were not provided to them by
any agency (New York Post, 2018). They attempted to reach out to FEMA but received silence
back from them over their pleas (New York Post, 2018).
In future situations, particularly where both the United States coast and bordering islands
are concerned, communication and preparation are key. Technology in today’s day and age is
able to provide an approximation for when hurricanes can be anticipated to make landfall. As a
large country bordering small islands, the United States should make every effort to contribute in
advance what supplies and manpower they can. However, they should make known to these
islands that their priority will be their own land. The United States government should then have
a plan in place for situations such as the above so that localities affected are receiving the proper
instruments that are needed for survival until a “new normal” can be found.
Conclusion
In conclusion, as time has passed, emergency response efforts have seen improvement.
Hurricane Andrew brought to the government’s attention the need and importance for
communication between agencies when allocating relief efforts. As Hurricane Katrina ensued
New Orleans, allocation of response efforts was not handled appropriately and therefore
drastically delayed the response and recovery time for many affected areas. Hurricanes Irma and
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Maria demonstrated how improper communication and help was provided by the United States
to its neighboring islands. Emergency response areas of mitigation, preparedness, response, and
recovery require much communication between different government levels and government
entities if success is to be the continued goal of an emergency response effort.
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