Post Katrina Response Plan

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After the September 11, 2001 attack on U.S soil by terrorists, the President with the backing of the Congress made a reactionary move aimed at consolidating the existing federal emergency plans to create a more comprehensive plan that covered the whole country. The efforts resulted in the establishment of the National Response Plan (NRP). The plan outlined broader lines of authority for the various agencies tasked with responding to emergencies as well as other disasters (Lindsay, (2008). After Hurricane Katrina, several problems and issues arose concerning the implementation of the NRP. The Congress in its wisdom enacted the Post-Katrina Management Reform with the aim of integrating preparedness as well as response agencies. Subsequently, …show more content…
Selective implementation by the NRF elements activation creates room for maximum flexibility for the unique operational nature of a serious situation. Thus, it enables the effective among the various federal and state agencies that are called upon during emergencies and disasters. For example, if a hurricane hits a region the local agencies move first followed up by state agencies and ultimately federal agencies depending on the extent of the disaster. This is framework integrates the efforts of all levels of government in mitigating the challenges posed by disasters and emergencies. However, planning at the local stage under the current framework could face several critical challenges. To begin, routine resource activation at the preliminary level is largely based on a preplanned response structure. Some emergencies may require the involvement of federal EOCs as aforementioned. A delay in invoking operations by the leadership of the EOCs could cause significant avoidable …show more content…
Although the framework is complex, it is largely manageable, and its scalability in applying the efforts of the federal, state, as well as local governments spells better management of disasters and emergencies. However as Lindsay (2008) asserts, while the document seemingly appears to be more concise compared with the NRP, has less jargons, and clarifies the roles and responsibilities of various agencies it doesn’t necessarily eliminate the issues that led to its establishment. For example, the document still has aspects of the PFO arrangement, there is insignificant stakeholder input of the non-federal agencies, and finally the Incident Annexes remain scanty and require more updates. However, we have to agree that the number of disasters that have required the application of the NRF are few and hence its implementation remains to be studied more