FEMA: Lessons Not Learned From Katrina

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) turned away willing volunteer workers.

The (botched) rescue operation managed by FEMA exposed the inadequasies of the agency. Lesson learned?

On Friday, May 4, an F5 tornado wiped the town of Greensburg, Kansas, almost entirely off the map.

Naturally, FEMA arrived at the scene of the disaster, to take control of the situation. So did willing volunteers, ready to assist in the rescue and recovery operation. So, had FEMA learned from Katrina? Hardly.

FEMA demanded that Greensburg needed to be "secured" before the area could be opened to real recovery efforts.

As hundreds of volunteers waited for over a week to be allowed to assist at the disaster area, hundreds of police from dozens of Kansas jurisdictions entered the city to establish a virtual police state.

In the immediate rescue and recovery, FEMA and local police worked to find survivors and the dead, as well as all and any firearms in the city.

Take into account that this is central Kansas, a region with extremely high legal gun ownership. Of the over 350 firearms confiscated by police immediately after the storm, only a third have been returned to their owners, leaving the firepower squarely in control of the state. And the Second Amendment is supposed to allow people to carry arms, protecting themselves from the government...

FEMA's mission was to safeguard the property of businesses in the area (I can see it now: bureaucrats in suits and National Guardsmen standing next to a pile of rubble, scratching their heads) and offer "low interest" loans to property owners affected. The National Guard was on hand as well to act as the enforcement mechanism for FEMA, while occasionally hauling debris and garbage out of the city.

FEMA eventually let the rescue volunteers into the town, all the while keeping a close eye and a tight leash on them.

So yet again, FEMA botched a rescue operation with its ineptitude. The most mind-boggling stupidity from FEMA came in the distribution of information to the affected residents. After a week at the scene, all that FEMA could offer them was a packet of information. The packet, however, had to be mailed to the recipients, and they had no mailing address, let alone a mailbox...

So, in short:
-A massive tornado wipes out your home and town;
-The government sends in the Federal Emergency Management Agency, to provide relief and assistance;
-Hundreds of volunteers offer their assistance;
-The rescue and recovery work begins immediately, and the rebuilding gets underway as soon as the danger is over and the rubble cleared.

Looks good in writing, doesn't it? Let's look at what happened instead:
-A massive tornado wipes out your home and town;
-The government sends in a headless chicken, to provide relief and assistance;
-Hundreds of volunteers offer their assistance;
-FEMA rejects the offers of help, asking instead for money;
-Local law enforcement and the National Guard gather up all firearms they can find;
-After a week or so since the tornado visited town, FEMA, after a long period of silence, mails you an information package;
-The package never reaches you, as the mailman is searching the fields in the next county, looking for your mailbox;
-Finally, the volunteers are let in, yet aren't really allowed to do much, and are closely supervised;
-Your town is a pile of rubble, and you now live in a mold-infested trailer, courtesy of FEMA (if they have any to spare, seeing as most of them are in the South, populated by the former citizens of New Orleans). Maybe you get a tent;
-The government grants you a "low interest" loan, when you have just lost everything. Hence, the government is making money off of your loss, all the while making your financial and personal recovery slower. This way the government gets you at your weakest and makes you pay more interest on the loan as it takes you longer to get back on your feet;
-After a short while, you're on your own, rebuilding with the help of the volunteers who were kept away from you in the immediate aftermath of the disaster. FEMA, local authorities, the National Guard, and the Government have forgotten you...

How many mishandled rescue and recovery missions can FEMA be allowed to maintain like this? Why can't willing volunteers be allowed to assist when they are needed the most?
Hurricane Season is just around the corner...

Sources:
http://www.homelandstupidity.us/2007/05/18/after-tornado-fema-disarms-town-turns-away-help/trackback/
http://www.reason.com/blog/show/120276.html