Leadership, Planning, Exercises, and Capabilities Underpin Catastrophic Preparation, Response, and Recovery

Four key themes, based on our preliminary work, underpin many of the  challenges encountered in the response to Hurricane Katrina and reflect  certain lessons learned from past catastrophes. They include the central importance of (1) clearly defining  and communicating leadership roles, responsibilities, and lines of  authority for the response at all levels in advance of a catastrophic  disaster, (2) clarifying the procedures for activating the National Response  Plan and applying them to emerging catastrophic disasters, (3) conducting  strong advance planning and robust training and exercise programs to test  these plans in advance of a real disaster, and (4) strengthening response  and recovery capabilities for a catastrophic disaster, including those such  as emergency communications, continuity of essential government  services, and logistics and distribution systems underpinning citizen safety  and security. Planning for a Catastrophic Disaster Calls for a Risk Management Approach

It is vital to have in place a risk management decision making approach to  develop federal capabilities and the expertise to use them to respond to a  catastrophic disaster. Given the likely costs, Congress should consider  using such an approach in deciding whether and how to invest in specific  capabilities for a catastrophic disaster. Hurricane Katrina was the first  major test of the NRP. Organizational Placement Has Been Raised as a Key FEMA Performance Factor

Because of FEMA’s mission performance during Hurricane Katrina,  concerns have been raised regarding the agency’s organizational  placement, including whether it should be disbanded and functions moved  to other agencies, remain within the Department of Homeland Security, or  again become an independent agency. Importantly, other factors, such as  the experience of and training provided to FEMA leadership and adequacy  of resources may be more important to FEMA’s future success than its  organizational placement. Long Term Rebuilding Efforts Raise Issues for Congressional Consideration

Madame Chairman, the federal government will be a major partner in the  longer-term rebuilding of the Gulf Coast because of the widespread  damage and economic impact. In support of state and local efforts, the  federal role in rebuilding will be particularly important for transportation  and health infrastructures and federal facilities. In addition, federal  programs will face financial difficulties and there is uncertainty  concerning the impact of catastrophic disasters on the availability and  affordability of insurance. The Federal Role and Involvement Will Raise Ongoing Issues

As we move forward, long-term rebuilding in the Gulf Coast raises issues  concerning the need for consensus on what rebuilding should be done,  where and based on what standards, who will pay for what, and what  oversight is needed to ensure federal funds are spent for their intended  purposes. Hurricanes Katrina and Rita: Contracting for Response and Recovery  Efforts. Hurricane Katrina: Providing Oversight of the Nation’s Preparedness,  Response, and Recovery Activities.
Why GAO Did This Study

The size and strength of Hurricane Katrina resulted in one of the largest natural disasters in our nation's history. Hurricane Katrina raised major questions about our nation's readiness and ability to respond to catastrophic disasters. Hurricane Rita increased demands on an already stressed response and recovery effort by all levels of government. The two hurricanes provided a sobering picture of the overwhelming strains on response and recovery if there are back-to-back catastrophic disasters in the same area. GAO has a large body of ongoing work on a range of issues relating to all phases of the preparation, response, recovery, and rebuilding efforts related to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

What GAO Found

Significant government and private resources were mobilized to respond to the hurricanes. However, these capabilities were clearly overwhelmed and there was widespread dissatisfaction with the results. Many of the lessons emerging from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita are similar to those we identified more than a decade ago, in the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew in 1992, which leveled much of South Florida. Four major issues have emerged from our preliminary work. The preparation and response to Hurricane Katrina are similar to lessons learned from past catastrophic disasters. These include the critical importance of (1) clearly defining and communicating leadership roles, responsibilities, and lines of authority for catastrophic response in advance of such events, (2) clarifying the procedures for activating the National Response Plan and applying them to emerging catastrophic disasters, (3) conducting strong advance planning and robust training and exercise programs, and (4) strengthening response and recovery capabilities for a catastrophic disaster. A risk management decision making approach is vital to develop the nation's capabilities and expertise to respond to a catastrophic disaster. Given the likely costs, Congress should consider using such an approach in deciding how best to invest in specific capabilities for a catastrophic disaster. Because of FEMA's mission performance during Hurricane Katrina, concerns have been raised regarding the agency's organizational placement, including whether it should be disbanded and functions moved to other agencies, remain within the Department of Homeland Security, or become an independent agency. However, other factors such as leadership and resources may be more important to FEMA's future success than organizational placement. Lastly, the federal government will be a major partner in the longer-term rebuilding of the Gulf Coast, supporting state and local efforts. The federal role in rebuilding will be particularly important for transportation and health infrastructures and federal facilities. In addition, federal programs will face financial difficulties and there is uncertainty about catastrophic losses affecting the availability and affordability of insurance. Long term rebuilding raises issues concerning the need for consensus on what rebuilding should be done, who will pay for what, and what oversight is needed to ensure federal funds are spent for their intended purposes.