Katrina

The response of the Federal government has been so inept that it is embarrassing. Can this administration be anymore incompetent? All those agencies and departments can't put two and two together and come up with a proficient way to address this event. I say lets start firing and rolling heads at the Federal level and put people with some common sense.

Not only do I have criticism of this administration but have some ideas to improve the logistics program that might be part of the next event when it happens.

Disaster Centers: Each state could designate 5000 or 10000 acres to serve as a staging area for disasters. Just like we have "National Park" we should have "Disaster Centers" for each state. That center could service the operation and coordination of any disaster when it happens. Agencies, Corporations, Charities will know ahead of time where to send personnel, equipment, and supplies for distribution.

Communication: Communication is critical to coordinate operations and disseminate information to personnel in the trenches and affected victims of the disaster. There is a technology called WiMax that is wireless network that can cover a 30 mile circumference that could be used for all sorts of communication. Four small WiMax servers at strategic points could service communications for 3600 square miles which include cell, radios, email, IM's, PDA's and webcams and all that is required is power from a small generator. This system could quickly be installed operated and maintained by 3 men team that could be dropped off by helicopter. Wireless Webcams could be placed throughout the affected area to have eyes on the ground to see how infective the operation is going.

Sector Planning: The affected area needs to be divided into grids and a map need to be created and disseminated quickly with a roster of people responsible each sector. A sector coordinator would be responsible to service that sector for any needs that arise and maintain order of operations. Part of the 1st priority is to move victims out of the area ASAP in order to maintain a proficient response. All victims whether injured or not need to be processed and entered into a database to keep track of time, date location where they were found and move to processing. Notes from pass history of dealing with catastrophic events will help guide how to proceed in the future.

Identification: Identifying victims is imperative to keeping track of victim population status a simple wrist ban with pertinent information could suffice. Utilizing existing systems such as used in shipping such as FedEx or UPS where a name and bar code tag designates an item, in this case a person could be used to track victims. Not only victims but all personnel that moves in and out of the affected area to get a clear view of who, what is happening, status and location. So a processing center has to be established in order to tag everyone.

Disseminating Information on a "Disaster Center Website" could help inform relatives and friends of the status of their love ones during a disaster. Anyone will be able to go and see who has been identified, what their location and what is their status without burdening the system. Whether they are injured or deceased or being housed at a certain location and instruct them on how communication works for both victims and family and friends to be able to post messages to one another.

Where and When: This should be done by all states but I would start with all the states that reside along the coastline first; especially the states that have a history of getting hit with disasters on a seasonal basis with the highest priority. These are just some ideas but if there was an ongoing "Disaster website" there could be an option for ordinary people to submit ideas that one would save money or explain a better way of doing things rather than starting from scratch. I think a special unit should be setup in the National Guard to run these centers as part of their duties since they have an already infrastructure that would lend itself perfectly.

What do you think? Rather than just criticize the administration or FEMA, you can criticize but also submit solutions on how best to address certain issues.

Ideas are welcome, please feel free to comment or share ideas on how the Feds can do a better job on responding to major events such as Katrina.