The Katrina Aftermath One Year: What Are the Lessons Learnt?

The Broward Times › October 19, 2009

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Summary

Not just from a city's unreadiness to deal with a Hurricane Katrina but, what did we learn in dealing with the aftermath of such a disaster. There's a plenty. Where do we start? How about with the city of New Orleans evacuation plan? Next time you tell poor people to evacuate, make sure you have a way for them to get out, and a place to go. Don't leave them behind to die. Nuff said. How about FEMA's assistance? You can barely find one person that is satisfied with FEMA's response and the subsequent "assistance" displaced residents have received. Some of whom still have not found their loved ones, or even know if their loved ones are alive. Then there's the FEMA checks, which somehow didn't get to all who needed them-and when they got them, it wasn't enough, or didn't last long enough. Then there were the one way tickets out of town. Many New Orleans residents want to go back-but they can't get back. How about giving them a ticket back to New Orleans? That's a lesson. If you evacuate them out, evacuate them back. Or sustain them for as long as they're displaced. Don't stop giving living expenses while they're displaced and then they can't live in either place. That's what FEMA's done. Then, there's the rebuilding effort.