Who is to blame for storm response?

Oct. 16, 2005

Valley Voices/Harry Yost

Most of the past month we have been treated to a litany of blame emanating from the effect of the hurricanes which damaged a large portion of the Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas Gulf Coast. Most of the &#8221blame game“ centers on New Orleans and the response (or lack thereof) of the city, state, and federal officials. It seems obvious to some of the pundits the president is to blame - if for no other reason than he is the president.

We were even treated to a pronouncement by the Environmental Minister of Germany, blaming the U.S. president (and the entire citizenry of the United States by implication) for the power of the storm(s). Why? Because we haven't signed the controversial Kyoto Treaty on global warming.

A stretch? Definitely, as monster hurricanes have happened at intervals over the past century all along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts.

While the president has taken the responsibility for the supposedly slow federal response, who is to blame for the perceived negligence of the local and state officials? The national news media did a bang-up job of reporting those failures, (and every wild rumor) at length.

Question: How was the national media able to get crews and equipment into the area so quickly when the local and state officials seemed paralyzed?

Failure of the levees was a major cause of the flooding of a large part of New Orleans. Why did they fail? Local and state (and some national) officials say not enough money was spent to properly build and maintain them.

Yet one news report shortly after the hurricane passed claimed there had been some $50 million available for upgrades since the mid-1990's. The money languished in the U.S. Treasury because of the lack of matching funds, (typically less than 10 percent) from the city and state.

They did, according to the same new reports, build a &#8221Mardi Gras fountain“ for a reported $600,000 and a bicycle trail on top of the levees for another $400,000.

Hindsight, which is always 20-20, asks why people were allowed to build a city below sea level in the first place? Why didn't &#8221The Government“ do something about that?

Why were individuals like the senator from Louisiana allowed to build palatial homes on the coast where they would take the brunt of any hurricane's storm surge, and then be allowed to commandeer a helicopter to take a television commentator and his crew to view the damage while others were sitting on their roofs waiting for rescue?

We were also treated, by national television, to a clip of the congressman from New Orleans castigating the former director of the Federal Emergency Management Administration for that agency's slow response. Another news report claimed the congressman had commandeered military vehicles and personnel to haul his belongings from his flooded home. (Again, while people were crying for help.)

Even though the director of FEMA at the time of hurricane(s) resigned, he didn't exactly &#8221fall on his sword“ accepting all the blame for that agency's slow response as demanded by some politicians. Despite claims by somemembers of Congress, the gentleman had no experience in emergency work. He told a congressional hearing, (maybe Congress should be running the agency. They seem to be able to quickly put together a hearing, with TV coverage, to lay blame within a few days after the fact), he had worked on several dozens of emergencies over the years.

A perusal of news reports from past hurricane emergencies shows FEMA has been accused of slow and inadequate responses virtually since its beginning under President Carter, who was quick to accuse President Bush of &#8221cronyism“ by appointing someone he knew personally to the job. (Only Republicans do that, never Democrats?)

There's an old saying popular among the grammar school crowd, (at least in the dark ages when I was one), which puts blame in a sharp perspective: &#8221When you point a finger at someone, there are three fingers pointing back at you.“

Palmer resident Harry Yost has been a free-lance writer and journalist for almost 40 years. His Valley Voices column will appear monthly.