FEMA is not fast enough!

This article is a follow-up to my previous one regarding getting rid of FEMA.? In that thread, I noted that design-thinking methodology would have us first empathize with our target audience.? In this case, that would be disaster survivors.? We should see FEMA through their eyes and understand how their experience with FEMA was unsatisfactory.? The second step would be to define the problem.? What we shouldn’t do is just jump to a solution. ?I actually don’t know what problem we would solve by getting rid of FEMA, but for demonstration purposes, let’s play out a comment that FEMA isn’t fast enough.

“FEMA is not fast enough” is a terrible problem statement.

Just stating that FEMA isn’t fast enough is a terrible problem statement and would have your thesis advisor sending you back to better define the problem.? There are myriad issues involved in disaster response and recovery.? In addressing FEMA’s speed of response, what are we talking about?? Do FEMA’s actions begin with a disaster declaration?? Do they begin when FEMA activates staff at its headquarters or send them to state and local operations centers?? Do FEMA’s actions begin when they hand out food, water, sanitary items, emergency generators?? Do FEMA’s actions begin when roads are repaired, communications and power are turned back on, water and wastewater are flowing again?? Let’s explore a few of these actions and see where FEMA is falling down.

Claim: FEMA did not activate fast enough for Hurricane Helene.

As has been the custom when I worked for the Agency, FEMA activates and moves people resources long before a known disaster strikes.? While at FEMA I worked in the Movement Control Unit and coordinated the flow of people and resources to a disaster area.? I worked the Pacific region and we would pre-position people, food, water, sanitary items, generators, etc., in FEMA warehouses and other locations so they would be available as soon as the storm passed.? We had contracts in place to the private sector mission assignments in place for our partners – the military, federal departments, the American Red Cross, and more.? With respect to Hurricane Helene, the Charlotte Observer reported that FEMA took the following actions before and immediately after the storm made landfall:

·????? Deployed at least 1,500 FEMA staff members in the Southeast.

·????? Placed millions of liters of water and many meals in staging areas where they could be quickly distributed.

·????? Worked side-by-side with impacted states in their operations centers.

·????? Had hospital assessment teams out within 24 hours of the storm’s arrival to make sure no ?patients needed to be evacuated.

·????? Provided hotel stays for almost 13,000 displaced Western North Carolina households.

The list goes on, but the point is FEMA actually revs into action long before a known disaster strikes.? As for no-notice events, I found FEMA to be equally agile.? When an earthquake and tsunami struck American Samoa in 2009, I think I was on duty at our FEMA Regional office within the hour.? The same for other no-notice disasters.? Will we achieve faster response times by getting rid of FEMA?? Did FEMA hold back state and local jurisdictions from conducting their own response?

Claim: FEMA did not restore communications and power fast enough.

When we pay our cellphone, ?cable, internet, and power bills, we do not write a check to FEMA.? FEMA does not have linemen and bucket trucks and miles of cable to string up when service is interrupted.? We pay private sector providers for these services.? They are responsible for maintaining their networks and services.? They are also responsible for recovering their networks in disasters.? Unlike governments and citizens, FEMA cannot reimburse private sector companies during disasters.? However, FEMA does work with state and local officials to enable speedy repairs through such actions as controlling traffic to prioritize responders.? As a FEMA Movement Control Unit staff member, I coordinated the movement of bucket trucks, wire, transformers, poles, etc. to Saipan following a typhoon.? Will getting rid of FEMA turn our power back on faster?? Will getting rid of FEMA return our phone service faster?? We could make our systems more resilient by adding redundant infrastructure.? Of course, that will likely require some rate hikes.

Claim: FEMA did not restore water and wastewater fast enough.

Just as with power and communications, we do not pay our water and sanitation bills to FEMA.? We pay a local provider – typically a combination of private and public sector providers.? As with power and communications, FEMA does not have an army of pipe fitters, spare pipe, valves, pumps, etc. to repair water and wastewater systems when they break.? FEMA does what it can to enable the movement of crews and equipment during recovery.? For public utilities, FEMA can even provide financial assistance.? If FEMA is not in the utility business, will getting rid of the agency speed the recovery of water and wastewater?? As with power and communications, utility providers could build redundant infrastructure and stockpile spare parts and equipment.? Again, I am betting our rates would increase.

Claim: FEMA did not repair roads and other infrastructure fast enough.

By now, the theme is apparent.? FEMA does not fix things.? FEMA enables and pays others to fix infrastructure.? If the damage is to infrastructure owned by another federal agency, that federal agency is automatically responsible for repairing it.? If the damage is to public infrastructure owned by state, territorial, tribal, or local governments, FEMA can provide reimbursement to those jurisdictions for their own repair of them.? That’s right, FEMA largely write checks.? Rightfully, it does not try to fix things on its own.? No single organization could ever hope to be all things to all people.? Will getting rid of FEMA make reimbursement of repairs faster?? Maybe? As a minimum, expediting the repair of infrastructure is well worth exploring, unless we just assume that it is the state and local jurisdictions’ responsibility to fix their own broken infrastructure.

Claim: FEMA is not providing financial aid to individuals and businesses fats enough.

Now we’re onto something.? FEMA does provide immediate financial aid and other assistance such as temporary housing.? It provides larger and more long-term financial aid as well.? However, the maximum amount of individual assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for the 2024 fiscal year is $42,500 for both housing and other needs assistance.? At its disaster recovery centers, FEMA provides information about assistance provided by many other federal agencies such as the Small Business Administration.? By providing a one stop shop, FEMA seeks to quickly provide individuals with access to a large number of ?Federal, state, local, non-profit, volunteer, and faith-based organizations.? Will getting rid of FEMA expedite assistance to individuals and businesses?? Maybe.? Maybe states and locals can more quickly provide immediate financial aid, housing assistance, and connection to all those who can help.

What’s the point?

My point here is not to tell you that FEMA is perfect.? It is not.? I have two points.? First, jumping right to a solution like getting rid of FEMA is not likely to improve disaster response and recovery.? This is especially relevant since FEMA does not own or have any control over all of the things that make up our modern lives.?FEMA simply enables them.? Second, this exercise jumped to a problem statement that FEMA isn’t fast enough.? Again, to really solve the problems of unsatisfactory disaster preparedness, response, and recovery requires us to first define good problem statements.? Again, that is step #2.? Step #1 remains for us to first empathize with our disaster survivors and really understand what they are going through.? Let’s start there shall we?