Lessons Learned: Long Beach,
MS Project
by Danielle Engle
In October 2005, Hopkins police chief, fire marshal and 6 other
city workers volunteered their time and travel expenses to drive
a relief caravan to Long Beach, Mississippi. A sister city about
the same land and population size as Hopkins, MN, Long Beach, MS
was devastated by Hurricane Katrina.
Although the storm was projected to travel 60 miles west of the
city, residents, businesses and organizations took precautions. Homes
and businesses were secured and some people moved to shelters. However,
they were not prepared for the coastal wide carnage that swept over
so many Gulf Coast communities.
The storm left the city without water, electricity and other essential
services. City vehicles were destroyed along with all the communication
equipment. They had no means to request assistance from state or
federal emergency response teams. During the initial days after the
storm, survivors had to be self-sufficient.
Fire and rescue teams worked 16-20 hour shifts clearing pathways
through the rubble in search of survivors. Others worked to repair
equipment and reestablish communication systems and other essential
services. Many of these workers lost contact with their families
for 5-6 weeks after the storm.
The Hopkins volunteers
understood the trauma common to emergency response teams working
in disaster situations. As peers, they arrived, prepared a hot
meal and gave these workers their first opportunity to talk about
their experiences. Afterward, volunteers toured the city. They
saw several residents enter disaster zones with potential hazard
warning signs posted. Sorting through the rubble of their former
homes, many were heard commenting, “I didn’t have
time to take anything. It was so sudden.”
Throughout the city, entire blocks, neighborhoods, businesses and
shopping malls were reduced to rubble. Overturned vehicles and appliances
were scattered along the beach. A semi-truck and trailer from a distant
truck stop was buried in the sand. The wide sweep of the hurricane
rendered support networks established with nearby cities useless.
The volunteers learned
some crucial lessons about emergency management planning that weekend.
Afterward, they held a debriefing and discussed changes and additions
to improve their city’s emergencymanagement
plan. In December, Hopkins Fire Marshal Dale Specken met with three
representatives from Access Press. He discussed the city’s
new plan, future goals and efforts underway to meet the needs of
residents with disabilities.
The first change implemented was a training program for city staff.
Specken explained that emergency response workers need plans in place
for their families. This is one way local governments can improve
worker response and performance in critical incidents. Attending
to family members is cited as one possible explanation for why some
city workers did not answer the call to duty during Hurricane Katrina.
In the coming months Hopkins is also implementing a citizen education
and outreach program. One goal of the program is to help citizens
establish emergency response networks. Neighborhood associations
are one way citizens can establish help networks. Many home-bound
elderly people and people with disabilities live independently in
their homes. Networking helps to identify people who may need assistance
in responding to a critical incident.
Establishing buddy systems
within the school, work placeand other establishments is another
method. A person with vision impairment may, for example, need
assistance in finding a relief shelter or transport vehicle. Someone
with a cognitive impairment may have difficulty understanding instructions
or following a map. In a crisis situation, surrounded by noise
and chaos, a person with a traumatic brain injury may be incapacitated
by their brain’s inability to focus or
process the vast enormity of stimuli.
Hopkins also obtained pamphlets from the National Organization for
Disabilities (NOD) at www.nod.org. The pamphlets include instructions
for designing emergency response kits for people with disabilities.
This is another communication tool the city is implementing to address
the needs of residents with disabilities.
When asked for a statement
on emergency preparedness for people with disabilities, Specken
emphasized, “Don’t become
complacent just because the chances of it [a critical incident] happening
are small. Don’t live with the perception that it’s never
going to happen here because it can.” As one of the volunteers
who drove to Long Beach, he witnessed the devastation made possible
when the unexpectedoccurs and people are not prepared to be self-sufficient.
One step people with
disabilities—or their representatives —can
take is to contact local officials. Ask about pamphlets and other
resources available for residents with disabilities. Hopkins learned
about the pamphlets from a person with a disability. Based on this
contact, the city now offers pamphlets to residents with disabilities.
Each contact made within another city or county helps to ensure that
citizens with disabilities are included in emergency management plans
and outreach efforts.
Lastly, Hopkins Information and Technology Department is developing
a program whereby residents can be notified by e-mail when a critical
incident occurs. A notification message will automatically be sent
to residents who request them. This is one way of notifying, for
example, individuals with hearing impairments who cannot hear sirens.
As with other efforts, inquiries with local officials and other representatives
widens the scope of efforts taken on behalf of people with disabilities.
In summary, the United States, throughout all levels of government,
is in the early stages of emergency managementplanning. Each step
taken at a legislative, federal, state or local level is important.
However, it is imperative for citizens with special needs or their
representatives, to act on their own behalf. People with and without
disabilities are encouraged to make emergency response kits number
one on their list of 2006 resolutions.
In closing, NOD announced
a major accomplishment in emergency preparedness for people with
disabilities. “On December 19, 2005, Senator
Tom Harkin (D-IA) introduced the Emergency Preparedness and Response
for Individuals with Disabilities Act of 2005. This bill calls for
the hiring of a Disability Coordinator in the U.S. Department of
Homeland Security, who will report directly to the Secretary. The
bill also requires that 30% of temporary housing for disaster victims
be made accessible to individuals with disabilities, and provides
incentives to create more accessible housing during reconstruction
efforts.”
