New FEMA Hurricane Plan Won't Be Ready

(CBS/AP)  A federal government plan for responding to emergencies will not be ready in time for the approaching hurricane season, officials have told Congress.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency, which bore the brunt of criticism following the 2005 season when Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated the Gulf Coast, sent an advisory to Congress last week acknowledging it will not meet its June 1 deadline for issuing a new national response plan.

The Atlantic hurricane season is officially from June 1 to Nov. 30, according to the Web site of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory. Nearly all hurricane and tropical storm activity occurs in that six-month period. Early September is the most-active period.

The FEMA advisory said development of the new plan had been delayed by unexpected issues, and more time is needed to resolve them. No new target date was set. In the meantime, a modified version of the plan in place during Katrina will be followed.

"Every post-Katrina report cited the enormous flaws with the current national response plan, yet here we are six weeks until hurricane season and FEMA has once again dropped the ball," said Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee. "Failing to have a revised plan in place and relying solely on the previously failed one is irresponsible and unacceptable."

FEMA spokesman Aaron Walker said the advisory was intended to serve as a heads-up to Congress that the plan might be delayed, but said FEMA is "still shooting for a June deadline."

The plan was formulated as a comprehensive approach to handle any kind of catastrophe, natural or man-made. The original plan was considered to have failed in a number of areas during the 2005 hurricane season. The White House ordered Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff to conduct a full review of the plan and to revise it.

Since last fall, various working groups have been meeting to revise and update the plan. Along with FEMA, representatives of other interested federal, state, local and tribal authorities, private sector companies, and non-government emergency agencies are working on the revisions.

Walker said the plan is an extremely complex document that will be published for comment, and FEMA wants to ensure it doesn't miss any important element or gloss over any critical issue.

"We are restructuring the entire way that the federal government deals with their state and local partners in a natural disaster or a terrorist attack," Walker said, adding that does not mean scrapping the old plan entirely.

FEMA worked just fine for everyone when it was a stand alone agency, then they created the Homeland Security B.S and fell its control, which meant more redtape to get the job done, in North Carolina quick action was taken by them after hurricane Floyd (1999) although some will say it was not quick enough, but then when you do not have any food, water or a place to stay, yesterday is not soon enough

[mrassekh]

Oh, come on. Is there anyone who actually believed FEMA would be ready - - for anything?

[long_rider]

The chimp has not been able to find any of his friends who know how to develop a plan, or write one for that matter.

I guess they will have to award halliburton another billion dollar contract to write a plan, and the contract will have a "no over site" clause, for security purposes.

This administration is a joke, and Americans still want him for a leader.

Back in the old days we would have comic strips about the chimp in the news papers. Seems like the news media is scared of the chimp.

Is there not something in the constitution about freedom of speach (the press)? I am sorry, I forgot, the media is owned buy large corporations, and the constitution does not apply to them.

The four levels of justice in America:

Corporations
Politicans
The rich
The poor slobs

[frankly6]

FEMA is still full of Bu$h cronies. When he came into office, Bu$h gutted the agency an replaced career disaster management people with loyalist cronies who had no experience. Thus the Katrina debacle and the current problems.

[melee4]

Forget FEMA just do your own hurricane preps & count on your friends, relatives, & neighbors. As an old hurricane survivor of some of the big ones,Camille & Ivan,you've got to take it into your own hands to be responsible for your family's survival & recovery. I give you an example,here in Florida the governor put in place a program to help folks harden their homes to shelter in place. Its a great idea but in order to qualify you must be living in your primary residence & it can't be a duplex or quadplex. I qualified in all ways except my home is a duplex townhome. The adjoining side is vacant & under remodeling to be put on the market for sale so I don't qualify as it has to be occupied by the owner & they have to qualify for the program & want to have their side upgraded to the new standards. I have a new roof since Ivan (paid for by my insurance)I need & can't afford is Hurricane Shutters for my windows. Rebuild Northwest Florida said nicely "its all or nothing" unless we can do both sides of the duplex. If the other side sells & the people who buy it don't want to be in this program then I'm out of luck. So it will be plywood on the windows again this year, but its getting awfully hard for this 60 year old to climb ladders to put up plywood for the first floor let alone the second.So in the mean time its time to start storing up on food, water, new batteries, etc. for this season & be prepared to leave if necessary. power.
Melee

[musty2u]

Sure, Florida got a few crumbs, token money. FEMA never has, nor will, be a truly good relief organization.

[nyckate]

Musty2U - oh please - FEMA's been the mainstay of Florida for decades now - that's right - Jeb's state made out pretty darned well through FEMA - when Bush was running in 2004 he even gave counties that weren't hit by hurricanes money for goodness sake.

Sheesh -- when Bush leaves office what are you members of the Morons-r-Us going to do???

[nyckate]

skyk - excellent point - Halliburton is raking in more billions in Katrina struck areas as well as in Iraq -- looks like Bush's plan was to bankrupt America fiscally and morally.

[musty2u]

Too bad Rafterman, you and yours will be among the first to cry for help. The whole cesspool that sucks up existance in the LA basin is at risk. Move now, or suffer later. FEMA can't, and won't, be able to help so swagger on if it makes you feel good. It will be a heyday for mortuary services. Money to be made.

[pakaal]

"In the meantime, a modified version of the plan in place during Katrina will be followed."

That's probably not going to boost anyone's level of confidence....