A LOOK AT HURRICANE KATRINA AND RELIEF EFFORTS BY FEMA.

Who is FEMA ? Mission Statement:  FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards. FEMA Employees  Craig Fugate-Top Administrator May 2009  Richard Serino-Deputy Administrator Oct  Jason McNamara-Chief of Staff Since 1993  Kenneth Murphy-Region 10 Administrator 2010 FEMA’s Focus: Mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery programs

Hurricane Katrina Timeline  Aug. 25, 2005: Hurricane Katrina makes landfall in Florida as a Category 1 hurricane with 125 mph winds. Caused $1-$2 billion worth of damages and leave 1 million without electricity. And starts heading toward Louisiana. 14 deaths were reported this day.  Aug. 27, 2005: Hurricane Katrina is now a Category 3 hurricane. President Bush declared a state of emergency in selected regions of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. FEMA must now coordinate disaster relief efforts.  Aug. 28, 2005: Hurricane Katrina is now a Category 5, with 175 mph winds. Concerns raised that the New Orleans levees won’t hold flood water.  1 million people evacuated the city of New Orleans. About 100,000 stayed and about 10,000 took shelter in the Superdome  Aug. 29, 2005: 80 percent of New Orleans is flooded. 1,577 people lost their lives in Louisiana. 238 people died in Mississippi  In Mississippi 90 percent of the buildings along the coastline are destroyed.  Aftermath: Looting and violence spreads throughout the cities. Coast Guard rescued 1,200 people from rooftops. And the Superdome is evacuated.

FEMA’s Initial Actions On Aug. 30, 2005, FEMA began their search and rescue operation. And set up temporary hospitals for the sick and injured. The American Red Cross launched disaster mobilization plan, by the end of the day 75,000 people were placed in temporary housing shelters. On Sept. 2, 2005, food, water and medical supplies began to arrive for the survivors who’ve been without for five days. Hurricane Katrina was the most devastating natural disaster in U.S. history, and included a more robust preparedness mission for FEMA.

The Truth

Bad Press & PR Lack of support from FEMA:  Low popularity rating  "FEMA ranked at the bottom in a new Associated Press-Ipsos poll that measured the public's views of a dozen federal government agencies. FEMA came in last, and the Internal Revenue Service and Transportation Security Administration tied for next to last.” FEMA Media Mistakes: 

Five Years After Katrina Focus on preparedness Showing what has been done in the devastated areas, and what is still going to be done Using empty jargon to try to gain support  lives/index.shtm lives/index.shtm

From Here… We’d like to see what pr specific efforts have been made (if any) We’d like to see if popularity ratings have changed for FEMA We will create a pr campaign for FEMA to regain public trust

Questions? What should we look into more? Thoughts? What do you want to see done? What problems did you have with FEMA