URBAN EMERGENCY

PREPAREDNESS

Ashley Camper, Chakolca Rhodes, Aimee Vesitis

Risks to Urban Areas

Natural disaster Terrorist Attack Determining an acceptable level of risk Magnification of urban environment

Fragmentation Jurisdictions

VerticalHorizontal

Overlapping missions/gaps

SectorsPublicPrivateNonprofit

September 11th Response

Creation of Department of Homeland Security

Movement of FEMA to DHS

Political Implications

Hurricane Katrina Response Community Block Grants

National Response Plan

National Incident Response System

National Preparedness Goal

After-action reports - FEMA

Development of Local Plan Specific to possible threats Can be generalized to all threats

Role of City Emergency ManagerVertical IntegrationHorizontal Integration“Point Person”

Los Angeles

Los Angeles

3,694,820 residents Multiple languages are spoken

Los Angeles Race Percentage of Population

White 46%

African American 11%

Asian 9%

American Indian & Alaska Native

0.7%

Native Hawaiian & Pacific Islander

0.1%

Other Race 25%

Los Angeles Preparation

The City has a very diverse population, therefore, communication is key

Under their Emergency Management Department, preparation materials are available in different languages

Emergency Management Department Coordinates the emergency

preparedness of all city departments. Coordinates the response and recovery

efforts during major disasters Eliminates confusion among

departments

Emergency Management Department Provides definitions and descriptions of natural

disasters that occur in Los Angeles Provides information for citizen action in the

event of a terrorist attack Offers tips on how citizens should react to

disasters in different environments There are also annexes to the City of Los

Angeles Emergency Operations Master Plan and Procedures that determine what city departments have responsibility in the event of a certain type of disaster.

Earthquake and Megacities Initiative Los Angeles is partnered with this international,

non-profit, scientific organization. They partner with megacities to develop best

practices for dealing with emergencies and disasters

Has four componentsKnowledge and practiceTraining and institutional strengthening Disaster risk assessmentDevelopment of a city-wide disaster risk

management master plan

Wildfires of October 2007 A string of wildfires hit Southern California in

October of 2007. Five counties, including Los Angeles County

were affected Over 20,000 people from the area had to be

evacuated EMD coordinated the efforts of firefighters,

water dropping helicopters

and rescue shelters, among

others.

Wildfires of October 2007 Intergovernmental assistance was

provided Former President Bush declared the

area a disaster FEMA paid 75 percent of the state’s

eligible firefighting costs. During rebuilding, citizens were urged to

use fire resistant materials.

Biloxi, Mississippi

Biloxi, Mississippi

Population: 45,768White alone - 26,343 (67.8%) Black alone - 6,855 (17.6%) Hispanic - 2,298 (5.9%) Asian alone - 2,217 (5.7%) Two or more races - 758 (2.0%) American alone - 280 (0.7%) Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone - 92 (0.2%) Other race alone - 22 (0.06%)

Biloxi’s Preparation

With the city being prone to hurricanes and a few other natural disaster; residents in Biloxi have to take all proper precautions.

All of these efforts are directed at preparing local communities with effective planning tools utilizing an all hazards approach.

Emergency Management Agency The Mississippi Management Agency

prepares, trains, and respond to all natural and man-made disasters that occur in the state.

Emergency Management Agency Provides training and courses for

individuals and groups to attend to learn more about emergency preparedness.

Offers several different prevention kits for all different kinds of disasters.

Disaster Recovery: for those who lost their home or property in a storm assistance is provided. (if approved by FEMA)

Emergency Management Agency Disaster Response: divided into the Operations and

Communications sections of MEMA, which jointly operate as the state's 24-hour warning point.

The Operations Section is responsible for coordinating support for state and local response in an all hazards concept

The Communications Section is the designated state warning point. Operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the Communications Section has the responsibility for alerting state and local officials to all natural or man-made incidents throughout the state.

Hurricane Katrina 2005 Hurricane Katrina

unleashed a fury of destruction

on South Mississippi and the

Gulf Coast. Hundreds of thousands of lives

were thrown into disarray. Mississippi’s hurricane preparedness set the

stage for the state’s post-Katrina recovery, saving lives and serving the immediate needs of those affected by the storm.

Hurricane Katrina 2005 Governor commissioned a Recovery,

Rebuilding, and Renewal program to help rebuilding after Katrina.

Intergovernmental assistance was provided Nearly 520,000 Mississippi families

registered for federal assistance with more than $1.3 billion given to those residents through the FEMA Individual Assistance program.

Hurricane Katrina 2005

More Efforts in disaster response and hazard mitigation took on major initiatives.

Increasing the capacity of state and local emergency agencies, promoting flood insurance coverage, and mandating stronger building codes and elevation requirements.

Best Practices

Central point of information Decentralized decision making center

Plan practiced frequently

Personnel “borrowing”

Formalized roles and responsibilities

Financial Context of Relief 75% Federal 18% State 7% Local

Depleted Tax BaseIncome Sales

Challenges in Completing the Report Finding direct information for responses

to emergency situations by both Los Angeles and Biloxi was difficult.

Determining what information to include regarding the Emergency Management process of both cities was also challenging.