cobargo rules
It is a cruel summer indeed for our friends Down Under. Raging fires in Australia have burned 15 million acres and destroyed more than 2,000 homes. The smoke from the bushfires is causing breathing problems 1,400 miles away in New Zealand. Twenty-four people are confirmed dead and experts say up to half a billion animals may also have been killed
Meanwhile, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison faces a barrage of criticism for his lackluster approach to the long-running catastrophe in his country
The controversy started weeks ago, just as the fires were starting, when an ill-timed vacation to Hawaii lit a fuse that would detonate into an explosion of outrage
Morrison cut short a visit on Thursday to the disaster zone near the coast in New South Wales, after running into a buzz saw in Cobargo. The angry citizens of the fire-ravaged town, many of whom had lost everything, provided him with a real-time review of his performance
“You won’t be getting any votes down here, buddy,” said one angry man. “You’re out, son. You are out.”
As he turned to leave, another resident shouted, “You’re not welcome here!” and used a colorful expletive to describe him
In Cobargo, the Prime Minister was schooled in the hard lessons that can only be learned in the disaster zone. The first is: the boss always owns the catastrophe
Government “owns” the disaster as a solemn obligation, and we rely on it for the services—firefighting and disaster response, for instance—that only it can provide
As he sipped a cocktail on a Hawaiian beach, Morrison signaled that his government actually didn’t own the disaster at all by dismissing the bushfire situation as ‘a state issue’
As an emergency manager in New York City for the past 20 years, I have seen this scenario play out again and again. President George H.W. Bush did the same thing in 1992 as Hurricane Andrew took aim at south Florida. His buzz saw was provided courtesy of the outraged citizenry in a devastated Homestead, Florida
Thirteen years later his son was schooled amidst the devastation of the Lower Ninth Ward in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina
In November 2013, after being criticized for a slow response to a super typhoon that killed 7,000 of his citizens, Philippine President Benigno Aquino said, "Our efforts rely on the local government...[it] has to take care of the…response"
All over the world, national officials avoid the hard work of preparing for catastrophes by pointing to states and provinces. The states own the catastrophe, they will say, our job is merely to provide “support”
Somebody should ask the Prime Minister today how well that is working for him
Another important rule catastrophes teach us is "you can run but you can’t hide”
As a vocal supporter of Australia’s coal industry, Morrison has denied any accountability for climate change. But just as he couldn’t outrun the catastrophe before him, the Prime Minister cannot hide from the slow-moving catastrophe of climate change
As the head of government, it is Morrison’s job to do everything in his power to prepare his nation for the risks of an uncertain future
This can’t be done by pointing to the states. Individual states can never do enough to meet the huge demands of climate change. Morrison must enable a collective ownership of catastrophes, along with the sources of climate change that are increasing them. For that he will need everyone – local, state and federal agencies, non-profits, voluntary organizations and the private sector – all-in and working together
The good citizens of Cobargo reminded their Prime Minister that it’s not about him, it’s about them; the children and families trapped in the disaster zone. In the same way, climate change is not about what one person believes or doesn’t believe, it’s about leadership. It’s about convening the best and brightest to peer beyond their brick wall of hope, to the epic bushfires and hurricanes to come, and begin to paint the broad outlines of the possible
As the boss, Scott Morrison owns every catastrophe. Each will come with its own unique assortment of buzz saws and, just as in Cobargo, with painful insight. The tragedy is that such insight is available today—about the actions we could take now that would increase our options or maybe even save our countries
Kelly McKinney is the Senior Director of Emergency Management + Enterprise Resilience for NYU Langone Health. He is the former Deputy Commissioner for Preparedness at the New York City Office of Emergency Management and Chief Disaster Officer at the American Red Cross in Greater New York. He is the author of Moment of Truth: The Nature of Catastrophes and How to Prepare for Them that was released last July by Post Hill Press
COO at MountainLogic
4 年From a couple contacts in Australia it sounds as if those responsible for fire wildland fire protection encounter one barrier that’s common to North America. Fuels management by prescriptive fire produces smoke. Citizens oppose smokey conditions at their homes. Carrying out prescriptive fires is stymied. Similarly people have not really decided they are ready to change fuel conditions in their neighborhoods. Blaming government, local or federal, for ‘not doing enough’ is easier than blaming ourselves for not supporting conditions that restrict fire growth, especially rate of growth and heat production. Until support for controlling fuel matrix at landscape and city levels becomes predominant no one should expect different outcomes. Just expect high and low fire years, associated with weather and fire starts. Blaming whatever politician happens to be in office in years with extreme fire conditions obscures need for all of us to support systemic change. Best. Bruce Verhei
Rescue Diver
4 年They should have requested help from nations with experience and equipment the first week. It is a tragic loss of so many things. Ecosystems, animals and every other important part of their nation. Wildland fire events respond well To massive fire ground suppression attacks that are well coordinated by multiagency overhead teams. This is a very sad event.
Gentleman of leisure
4 年The first sentence prefaced the tone of this post. Little point reading the rest.
Before you unfriend me, tell me why I'm wrong. I'm rational.
4 年When it comes down to it, it's ultimately everyone's responsibility. We just need a way to bring people together in order create a holistic method of response and planning. ??