HURRICANE KATRINA

HURRICANEKATRINA
Investigations
Highlights of the White House and congressional investigations of disaster planning and response failures exposed by Hurricane Katrina:
A special House committee criticized local, state and federal officials, saying they lacked urgency in preparing for disasters. It found that all levels of government moved too slowly to help victims once Katrina hit. The report did not make any recommendations for change.
The White House report focused on flawed federal plans and confusion during the storm. It described poor communications systems, delays in delivering supplies and overall tumult within the administration. The report made 125 recommendations, including 11 to be completed by the start of the hurricane season on June 1. They included plans for evacuating victims, ably tracking supplies and delivering quick information from disaster zones.
A Senate investigation offered 86 recommendations, including better planning for evacuating the elderly and the poor, better communications equipment for responders and more money for disaster preparedness. The most dramatic recommendation was scrapping the Federal Emergency Management Agency and replacing it with a more powerful successor.
Associated Press
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