What could not be predicted was that the city's infrastructure would so miserably fail the people of New Orleans.
As images of looting and stranded citizens filled the airways, taken from news helicopters, the city's police force had virtually abandoned their posts, and some were accused of participating in the looting that followed the disaster there was something noticeably missing in the images; there were no police rescues, no Red Cross, no fire department rescue teams and no National Guard. Journalist John McQuaid described it this way:
But Katrina was much more than a natural event; human hands played a role in the damage and in the storm's equally disastrous aftermath. Katrina exposed deep institutional flaws in the nation's emergency response, supposedly upgraded following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. It easily overwhelmed the federal levee system, built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, that protected New Orleans and its nearby suburbs; investigations showed afterward the system was considerably weaker than the Corps had claimed and that serious engineering errors had been made in its construction. Katrina also dealt a serious blow to the standing of President George W. Bush, who had staked his presidency on his ability to protect the citizenry, yet seemed unable to muster a robust response to the storm. (McQuaid 213)."
Volumes can be written about the inadequacy of response to Katrina by city, state, federal officials and even the Red Cross. It is perhaps the worst example of America's inability to cope with disaster.
2003 Blackout
In August of 2003, it was revealed the extent to which mankind had both become dependent upon technology, and was, at the same time, at the mercy of technological mechanisms controlling our lives.
Rae Zimmerman (2004) writes:
This second edge of the sword was felt in 2003 when history repeated itself with a number of electric power blackouts around the world of magnitudes rarely seen before - in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Italy, Sweden and Denmark....
Disaster Preparedness Plan: Georgia has been an area threatened by some of form of natural disaster that has a huge negative impact on the well-being of its residents and the personnel and financial resources of the emergency response agencies. The most common natural disaster that occurs in this area is tornadoes that have terrorized both the rural and urban areas while making everyone in danger of their perils. In the recent
Regions of overlapped accountability and authority wanted to be obviously recognized previous to any disaster. A lasting infrastructure needed also to be in place and upheld for any proficient completion of defensive actions. Such an infrastructure had to comprise quick communications systems, involvement teams and observation networks. Mobile ground observation teams were needed, as was airborne observation and tracking of the plume. Many countries reacted to this need by
Dombrowsky "Disaster" as a Trigger Joseph Scanlon, Director of the Emergency Communications Research Unit at Carleton University, states that the term "disaster" has undergone a transformation in the wake of 9/11. Its transformation is the center of debate for researchers whose work relies on an adequate definition and understanding of "disaster" -- yet Scanlon makes clear that he has been particularly struck "by how much of the debate [is]...influenced by awareness of
New York State firefighting history is a microcosm of early and modern disaster preparedness. Definition of disaster in the historic era and modern era. Early historical facts. The need for uninterrupted communication. Response to needs. Advent of the Internet. New needs, new responses. Worthiness of Disaster Recovery and Contingency Plans for keeping communications flowing smoothly. The overall importance of communication. The firefighting department of New York City, generally considered to be the first of organized efforts to combat community
Global Warming Formal Outline what is climate change and what is it doing? The reality of global warming: fact vs. fiction and the marginalized greed-based business perspective The Economics of global warming vs. The moral impact of global warming on all stakeholders including non-human ones. Climate change, not global warming: the effects are different in different parts of the globe. The political, social, and financial challenges that global warming creates and how the challenges can be
This includes putting in place international legal systems, dispute resolution mechanisms as well as cooperative arrangements.14 The call this approach social peace-building or structural peace-building. Such peace-building involves "creating structures -- systems of behavior, institutions, concerted actions -- that support the embodiment or implementation of a peace culture."15 This is what the author's call multi-track diplomacy. It involves individuals who are not normally involved in the peace process, particularly business
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now