Time for a Culture of Preparedness

Throughout Louisiana, retired Lieutenant General Russel Honore is using his public recognition from Hurricane Katrina to push for a culture of preparedness. Along with many other disaster-related professionals, Honore is trumpeting the need for ongoing readiness because many people and businesses in the state still do not make preparedness an ongoing priority.

Since 1953, Louisiana has experienced 55 federally declared disasters or emergencies. That number includes the expected hurricanes, tornadoes, and floods, but it also includes winter and ice storms. Since 1994, five winter weather storms in the state have received federal disaster status.

Louisiana is not alone in disaster regularity. One need only look at FEMA's website to see that federally-declared disasters occur regularly across the country. In 2008, the U.S. experienced 74 major disasters or emergencies across 33 states, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands. In fact, Texas, California, Florida, Oklahoma, and New York rank above Louisiana in total number of disasters since 1953. (For comparison's sake, the states with the fewest disasters were Wyoming, Utah, Rhode Island, and the District of Columbia, all with 7 in the same time period.)

News reports also drive home the point that devastating events occur on a regular basis. At the time of this writing, wildfires rage across southern California, terrorist groups are calling for more attacks against the US, and Louisiana and Texas continue the clean-up process after two hurricanes.

The trend of disaster regularity is clear. The numbers above reflect only those events that reach federal levels of recognition and do not include smaller, local events, which can be just as devastating to a family or business. In short, ignoring preparedness is simply a perilous and risky way to go through life.

Obama's HS Plan Beginning to Emerge

Following his recent victory, President-elect Barack Obama's homeland security strategy is beginning to come to light. The strategy is significantly different from existing policy and may indicate a positive step forward in securing the country.

Obama's goals for homeland security are:

• Prevent 21st Century Attacks Against the Homeland
• Defeat Terrorism Worldwide
• Ensure Nuclear Security
• Strengthen American Biosecurity
• Protect Our Information Networks
• Improve Intelligence Capacity and Protect Civil Liberties
• Prepare for Terrorist Attacks and Natural Disasters
• Protect Critical Infrastructure
• Restore America's Aging Infrastructure

The administration's approach differs from the past in three key are

• It places more emphasis on prevention and preparation measures.
• The plan transitions to a risk-based assessment to distribute HS funding.
• It strives to create closer partnerships with local, state and private sector in prevention, mitigation, and preparedness.

The last point is an important recognition of the concept that all disasters are local. As such, local and state authorities really run the show and use federal resources to assist where needed, not the other way around.

The details of Obama's policy remain vague at the time of this writing, but by most accounts, it is off to a good start. As the particulars emerge I will report on the impact, particularly as it pertains to the private sector.

An outline of the report may be read here.

California Schedules 7.8 Earthquake

The next big earthquake is scheduled to hit southern California on November 13. Millions will be affected.

Authorities are calling the massive earthquake exercise the Great Southern California Shakeout. In an unusual move, the public is being asked to participate. According to the website, individuals and businesses can register to participate across Los Angeles county.

The effort is being led by the U.S. Geological Survey and other agencies. The exercise also coincides with a gathering of scientists, policy makers, and emergency responders from around the world to discuss quake policies.

Despite an aggressive push to get the word out to the public, only 1 business has signed up to participate in the exercise. Hopefully, that is not an indication of readiness in the area.