The Real Response To Sandy

[336thF15E]

Unfortunately, there are some people in this country who are so base, that all they seem to be capable of doing is creating false red herrings about the ground based response to a national crisis. This post is about the nature of the real response to Sandy and some of its key elements, as opposed to the fictional characterization now being projected by some elements in the Media. This post is also about what has already been done (as a matter of fact), some of the things that are now "ongoing," as well as what my personal response to the needs of those impacted by Sandy will be and why.

The country gets hit with the largest weather system in the nation's recorded history, extending at one point all the way from the Caribbean to the coastal edge of New York, having displaced countless thousands of people physically and disrupting utilities to millions more, and all some people can do is tap their political feet looking for the first opportunity to make some off the wall comment about the "response to Sandy," as being "Obama's fault."

The Federal Government's Response to Sandy:

a) The POTUS took initial action to open up early lines of communication with every single Governor that was projected by the United States Weather Service, to be a potential target of Sandy.

b) The POTUS took initial action to inform each Governor whose state was projected to be a target of Sandy, that he would be available to do whatever a President can do in such situations, to ensure that FEMA was as responsive as possible and that the United States Navy and Coast Guard was already on alert.

c) The POTUS took special consideration, based on the United States Weather Service projections that the area of New York and New Jersey, stood the highest mathematical probability for being inside the conical track of Sandy's Eye, to inform those Governors that the President would make every effort to expedite the Federal response to those areas. Three (3) United States Navy vessels were pre-positioned and then moved into the area of the New York harbor, after the passing of Sandy, and are currently being used for staging airborne rescue missions and other airborne relief efforts.

Done.

d) Governor Chris Christie, himself, publicly expressed his satisfaction with the responsiveness and proactive demeanor of the POTUS both prior to and subsequent to Sandy, along with Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

e) The POTUS arranged for FEMA's Assessment Team to be per-posisitioned on the ground before Sandy struck in the areas (New York and New Jersey) where the United States Weather Service projected the highest mathematical probability for storm damage.

Done.

f) The first three (3) steps in FEMA's Response Protocol is to:

- 1. Do no additional harm. Do not put responders in a strategic or tactical position where they are unable to function in their role, as this reduces the response to victims and only serves to increase their suffering. Insure initial storm passage and the low probability for the creation of a second system coupling to the first. Launch initial ground based and aerial assessment of damage (this sub-process is always ongoing).

Done.

- 2. In the event of local water tables that have risen, insure that flood waters have receded sufficient to allow safe passage of ground based response teams and personnel. Coordinate resources to clear streets, roads, bridges and passageways to enable the reach and extension of emergency responders, relief personnel and their equipment.

Ongoing & Persistent.

- 3. Coordinate with local emergency services and initiate first wave of search & rescue operations, including but not limited to: door-to-door searches, open field & street level searches, airborne and underwater searches. Sustain first wave until reasonably confident that no surviving victims remain.

Ongoing & Persistent.


It is the responsibility of the Local Government to re-establish Utilities such as Electricity and Gas. Electrical and Gas services cannot be randomly regenerated, merely because people are complaining to the members of the Media, who then get in front of a camera as fast as they can to tell the entire world that the "FEMA" response is "slow."

Above ground power lines must be evaluated for repair or replacement and load tested before being put back into service. The structures (Homes and Commercial Buildings) that have been physically displaced by the storm, cannot be reconnected to services at all, until they have been rebuilt. All caution must be taken to insure that no health and safety hazards will be the result of resuming either Gas or Electrical services. Doing so, when inappropriate could result in additional deaths. All of this work takes time, as the storm has altered the topology in many affected areas making access to those places that must be evaluated difficult.

Portable power generators can only be deployed after such time has passed that is sufficient to allow for the clearing of obstructions that block the roads, highways, streets, bridges and pathways in which the generators will be placed into service. If you cannot drive down a street, then it is highly unlikely that you will be able to deliver a portable power generator using that same street and/or access way.

The total surface area that has been adversely impacted and physically altered by this storm is massive in both size and scope. The total number of states negatively impacted has been unprecedented in U.S. history. Therefore, it is expected that the aggregate response to such a crisis will be felt as being significantly slower than other weather related crises in the past.

I lived through the Loma Prieta Earthquake of 1989, that devastated parts of the Northern California Bay Area. A portion of the upper deck of the Alameda side of the Bay Bridge collapsed, a large section of a double-deck freeway (Cypress) collapsed crushing people below inside their vehicles, sections of San Francisco were burning to the ground and gas related fires were breaking out in portions of the East Bay. Through it all - people found away to start working together for the common good.

The response in many areas was slow, simply because accessing those areas was difficult. Just because access is difficult, does not mean that a response is not underway:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fV59oWjefAQ&feature=related]Quake of 89- A Video Chronicle Part 1 - YouTube[/ame]

People are suffering after Sandy. People are tired. People are hungry. People are human beings and therefore, they have very human limitations on the amount of suffering they can endure before becoming agitated at the fact that they are suffering. As a direct result they will complain about not receiving enough attention. They will complain about the response time of the relief effort.

The vast majority of them do not understand how the relief operations are organized and executed, nor do they care about such things. All they know is that their neighborhood, their town, their city, their block, or their house are in total disarray and they want things to return back to normal. That sentiment is normal. Many of them are in a severe state of shock and very uncertain about the future. Many of them cannot see beyond the desolation that surrounds them.

All of that is very human and very much expected.

What is NOT expected is for those of us standing on the outside including those members of the Media, to sit back and Monday Morning Quarterback the relief and response effort that literally spans across several different states and impacts literally millions of people. FEMA was on the ground before the storm struck and they, the Red Cross and many different organizations are working tirelessly to respond to the needs of the people who have have their lives literally turned upside down by Sandy.

The President has initiated the most responsive relief effort in the history of FEMA, without question. Nobody who understands what's happening on the ground disputes that fact, other than those attempting to score political points, mere days before an election. Now is not the time to politicize an American tragedy. The damage is widespread and the relief effort is underway as robustly as it possibly can be.

I have a Brother and a Sister, who live in New York and who have been adversely affected by this storm. They are engaged in helping their neighbors on a daily basis, as their resources allow them to, despite the fact that they have been negatively impacted as well. That's called character. That's called being a Citizen and a Patriot.

My Personal Response to Sandy:

I will be loading my personal aircraft with supplies and staples up to the maximum useful load limits of my aircraft and flying into the New York area, first to assist and comfort my family members and then to do what I can for others on the ground.

I will also be donating all revenues generated by my firm in the month of November and December, to the Red Cross, and I will deliver that check preemptively when I arrive in New York, on Tuesday morning.

We can sit here and attempt to score political points before the Presidential Election, or we can each find a way to help our fellow Citizens who are now in need.

Do what you can to help, instead of being political fire starter.

 

[tyroneweaver]

this wasn't the largest storm in the nations history. Given that false hood the rest of the article doesn't matter

 

[Mad Scientist]

I'm doing my part. My Hedge Fund Manager and I are gonna' use High Frequency Trading Algorithms to create then profit from small moves in prices on the Stock Market.

Then we're gonna' take that money and move it offshore, probably to the Cayman Islands.

Hows that sound?

 

[tyroneweaver]

hope ya make a million

 

[idb]

this wasn't the largest storm in the nations history. Given that false hood the rest of the article doesn't matter

That isn't what he said.

 

[kiwiman127]

Sandy did hit America's most densely populated area, thus making it a very costly storm. It's really that simple.

 

[CrotchetyGeezer]

Unfortunately, there are some people in this country who are so base, that all they seem to be capable of doing is creating false red herrings about the ground based response to a national crisis. This post is about the nature of the real response to Sandy and some of its key elements, as opposed to the fictional characterization now being projected by some elements in the Media. This post is also about what has already been done (as a matter of fact), some of the things that are now "ongoing," as well as what my personal response to the needs of those impacted by Sandy will be and why.

The country gets hit with the largest weather system in the nation's recorded history, extending at one point all the way from the Caribbean to the coastal edge of New York, having displaced countless thousands of people physically and disrupting utilities to millions more, and all some people can do is tap their political feet looking for the first opportunity to make some off the wall comment about the "response to Sandy," as being "Obama's fault."

The Federal Government's Response to Sandy:

a) The POTUS took initial action to open up early lines of communication with every single Governor that was projected by the United States Weather Service, to be a potential target of Sandy.

b) The POTUS took initial action to inform each Governor whose state was projected to be a target of Sandy, that he would be available to do whatever a President can do in such situations, to ensure that FEMA was as responsive as possible and that the United States Navy and Coast Guard was already on alert.

c) The POTUS took special consideration, based on the United States Weather Service projections that the area of New York and New Jersey, stood the highest mathematical probability for being inside the conical track of Sandy's Eye, to inform those Governors that the President would make every effort to expedite the Federal response to those areas. Three (3) United States Navy vessels were pre-positioned and then moved into the area of the New York harbor, after the passing of Sandy, and are currently being used for staging airborne rescue missions and other airborne relief efforts.

Done.

d) Governor Chris Christie, himself, publicly expressed his satisfaction with the responsiveness and proactive demeanor of the POTUS both prior to and subsequent to Sandy, along with Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

e) The POTUS arranged for FEMA's Assessment Team to be per-posisitioned on the ground before Sandy struck in the areas (New York and New Jersey) where the United States Weather Service projected the highest mathematical probability for storm damage.

Done.

f) The first three (3) steps in FEMA's Response Protocol is to:

- 1. Do no additional harm. Do not put responders in a strategic or tactical position where they are unable to function in their role, as this reduces the response to victims and only serves to increase their suffering. Insure initial storm passage and the low probability for the creation of a second system coupling to the first. Launch initial ground based and aerial assessment of damage (this sub-process is always ongoing).

Done.

- 2. In the event of local water tables that have risen, insure that flood waters have receded sufficient to allow safe passage of ground based response teams and personnel. Coordinate resources to clear streets, roads, bridges and passageways to enable the reach and extension of emergency responders, relief personnel and their equipment.

Ongoing & Persistent.

- 3. Coordinate with local emergency services and initiate first wave of search & rescue operations, including but not limited to: door-to-door searches, open field & street level searches, airborne and underwater searches. Sustain first wave until reasonably confident that no surviving victims remain.

Ongoing & Persistent.


It is the responsibility of the Local Government to re-establish Utilities such as Electricity and Gas. Electrical and Gas services cannot be randomly regenerated, merely because people are complaining to the members of the Media, who then get in front of a camera as fast as they can to tell the entire world that the "FEMA" response is "slow."

Above ground power lines must be evaluated for repair or replacement and load tested before being put back into service. The structures (Homes and Commercial Buildings) that have been physically displaced by the storm, cannot be reconnected to services at all, until they have been rebuilt. All caution must be taken to insure that no health and safety hazards will be the result of resuming either Gas or Electrical services. Doing so, when inappropriate could result in additional deaths. All of this work takes time, as the storm has altered the topology in many affected areas making access to those places that must be evaluated difficult.

Portable power generators can only be deployed after such time has passed that is sufficient to allow for the clearing of obstructions that block the roads, highways, streets, bridges and pathways in which the generators will be placed into service. If you cannot drive down a street, then it is highly unlikely that you will be able to deliver a portable power generator using that same street and/or access way.

The total surface area that has been adversely impacted and physically altered by this storm is massive in both size and scope. The total number of states negatively impacted has been unprecedented in U.S. history. Therefore, it is expected that the aggregate response to such a crisis will be felt as being significantly slower than other weather related crises in the past.

I lived through the Loma Prieta Earthquake of 1989, that devastated parts of the Northern California Bay Area. A portion of the upper deck of the Alameda side of the Bay Bridge collapsed, a large section of a double-deck freeway (Cypress) collapsed crushing people below inside their vehicles, sections of San Francisco were burning to the ground and gas related fires were breaking out in portions of the East Bay. Through it all - people found away to start working together for the common good.

The response in many areas was slow, simply because accessing those areas was difficult. Just because access is difficult, does not mean that a response is not underway:

Quake of 89- A Video Chronicle Part 1 - YouTube

People are suffering after Sandy. People are tired. People are hungry. People are human beings and therefore, they have very human limitations on the amount of suffering they can endure before becoming agitated at the fact that they are suffering. As a direct result they will complain about not receiving enough attention. They will complain about the response time of the relief effort.

The vast majority of them do not understand how the relief operations are organized and executed, nor do they care about such things. All they know is that their neighborhood, their town, their city, their block, or their house are in total disarray and they want things to return back to normal. That sentiment is normal. Many of them are in a severe state of shock and very uncertain about the future. Many of them cannot see beyond the desolation that surrounds them.

All of that is very human and very much expected.

What is NOT expected is for those of us standing on the outside including those members of the Media, to sit back and Monday Morning Quarterback the relief and response effort that literally spans across several different states and impacts literally millions of people. FEMA was on the ground before the storm struck and they, the Red Cross and many different organizations are working tirelessly to respond to the needs of the people who have have their lives literally turned upside down by Sandy.

The President has initiated the most responsive relief effort in the history of FEMA, without question. Nobody who understands what's happening on the ground disputes that fact, other than those attempting to score political points, mere days before an election. Now is not the time to politicize an American tragedy. The damage is widespread and the relief effort is underway as robustly as it possibly can be.

I have a Brother and a Sister, who live in New York and who have been adversely affected by this storm. They are engaged in helping their neighbors on a daily basis, as their resources allow them to, despite the fact that they have been negatively impacted as well. That's called character. That's called being a Citizen and a Patriot.

My Personal Response to Sandy:

I will be loading my personal aircraft with supplies and staples up to the maximum useful load limits of my aircraft and flying into the New York area, first to assist and comfort my family members and then to do what I can for others on the ground.

I will also be donating all revenues generated by my firm in the month of November and December, to the Red Cross, and I will deliver that check preemptively when I arrive in New York, on Tuesday morning.

We can sit here and attempt to score political points before the Presidential Election, or we can each find a way to help our fellow Citizens who are now in need.

Do what you can to help, instead of being political fire starter.

Interesting. I'd be curious to see what the difference was between this and Hurricane Katrina. I believe all the above-mentioned steps were taken by George W. Bush and the governors, mayors and other political leaders of states impacted by Hurricane Katrina. With, of course, the exception of one Kathleen Blanco and Mayor Nagin.

 

[depotoo]

Unfortunately, there are some people in this country who are so base, that all they seem to be capable of doing is creating false red herrings about the ground based response to a national crisis. This post is about the nature of the real response to Sandy and some of its key elements, as opposed to the fictional characterization now being projected by some elements in the Media. This post is also about what has already been done (as a matter of fact), some of the things that are now "ongoing," as well as what my personal response to the needs of those impacted by Sandy will be and why.

The country gets hit with the largest weather system in the nation's recorded history, extending at one point all the way from the Caribbean to the coastal edge of New York, having displaced countless thousands of people physically and disrupting utilities to millions more, and all some people can do is tap their political feet looking for the first opportunity to make some off the wall comment about the "response to Sandy," as being "Obama's fault."

The Federal Government's Response to Sandy:

a) The POTUS took initial action to open up early lines of communication with every single Governor that was projected by the United States Weather Service, to be a potential target of Sandy.

b) The POTUS took initial action to inform each Governor whose state was projected to be a target of Sandy, that he would be available to do whatever a President can do in such situations, to ensure that FEMA was as responsive as possible and that the United States Navy and Coast Guard was already on alert.

c) The POTUS took special consideration, based on the United States Weather Service projections that the area of New York and New Jersey, stood the highest mathematical probability for being inside the conical track of Sandy's Eye, to inform those Governors that the President would make every effort to expedite the Federal response to those areas. Three (3) United States Navy vessels were pre-positioned and then moved into the area of the New York harbor, after the passing of Sandy, and are currently being used for staging airborne rescue missions and other airborne relief efforts.

Done.

d) Governor Chris Christie, himself, publicly expressed his satisfaction with the responsiveness and proactive demeanor of the POTUS both prior to and subsequent to Sandy, along with Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

e) The POTUS arranged for FEMA's Assessment Team to be per-posisitioned on the ground before Sandy struck in the areas (New York and New Jersey) where the United States Weather Service projected the highest mathematical probability for storm damage.

Done.

f) The first three (3) steps in FEMA's Response Protocol is to:

- 1. Do no additional harm. Do not put responders in a strategic or tactical position where they are unable to function in their role, as this reduces the response to victims and only serves to increase their suffering. Insure initial storm passage and the low probability for the creation of a second system coupling to the first. Launch initial ground based and aerial assessment of damage (this sub-process is always ongoing).

Done.

- 2. In the event of local water tables that have risen, insure that flood waters have receded sufficient to allow safe passage of ground based response teams and personnel. Coordinate resources to clear streets, roads, bridges and passageways to enable the reach and extension of emergency responders, relief personnel and their equipment.

Ongoing & Persistent.

- 3. Coordinate with local emergency services and initiate first wave of search & rescue operations, including but not limited to: door-to-door searches, open field & street level searches, airborne and underwater searches. Sustain first wave until reasonably confident that no surviving victims remain.

Ongoing & Persistent.


It is the responsibility of the Local Government to re-establish Utilities such as Electricity and Gas. Electrical and Gas services cannot be randomly regenerated, merely because people are complaining to the members of the Media, who then get in front of a camera as fast as they can to tell the entire world that the "FEMA" response is "slow."

Above ground power lines must be evaluated for repair or replacement and load tested before being put back into service. The structures (Homes and Commercial Buildings) that have been physically displaced by the storm, cannot be reconnected to services at all, until they have been rebuilt. All caution must be taken to insure that no health and safety hazards will be the result of resuming either Gas or Electrical services. Doing so, when inappropriate could result in additional deaths. All of this work takes time, as the storm has altered the topology in many affected areas making access to those places that must be evaluated difficult.

Portable power generators can only be deployed after such time has passed that is sufficient to allow for the clearing of obstructions that block the roads, highways, streets, bridges and pathways in which the generators will be placed into service. If you cannot drive down a street, then it is highly unlikely that you will be able to deliver a portable power generator using that same street and/or access way.

The total surface area that has been adversely impacted and physically altered by this storm is massive in both size and scope. The total number of states negatively impacted has been unprecedented in U.S. history. Therefore, it is expected that the aggregate response to such a crisis will be felt as being significantly slower than other weather related crises in the past.

I lived through the Loma Prieta Earthquake of 1989, that devastated parts of the Northern California Bay Area. A portion of the upper deck of the Alameda side of the Bay Bridge collapsed, a large section of a double-deck freeway (Cypress) collapsed crushing people below inside their vehicles, sections of San Francisco were burning to the ground and gas related fires were breaking out in portions of the East Bay. Through it all - people found away to start working together for the common good.

The response in many areas was slow, simply because accessing those areas was difficult. Just because access is difficult, does not mean that a response is not underway:

Quake of 89- A Video Chronicle Part 1 - YouTube

People are suffering after Sandy. People are tired. People are hungry. People are human beings and therefore, they have very human limitations on the amount of suffering they can endure before becoming agitated at the fact that they are suffering. As a direct result they will complain about not receiving enough attention. They will complain about the response time of the relief effort.

The vast majority of them do not understand how the relief operations are organized and executed, nor do they care about such things. All they know is that their neighborhood, their town, their city, their block, or their house are in total disarray and they want things to return back to normal. That sentiment is normal. Many of them are in a severe state of shock and very uncertain about the future. Many of them cannot see beyond the desolation that surrounds them.

All of that is very human and very much expected.

What is NOT expected is for those of us standing on the outside including those members of the Media, to sit back and Monday Morning Quarterback the relief and response effort that literally spans across several different states and impacts literally millions of people. FEMA was on the ground before the storm struck and they, the Red Cross and many different organizations are working tirelessly to respond to the needs of the people who have have their lives literally turned upside down by Sandy.

The President has initiated the most responsive relief effort in the history of FEMA, without question. Nobody who understands what's happening on the ground disputes that fact, other than those attempting to score political points, mere days before an election. Now is not the time to politicize an American tragedy. The damage is widespread and the relief effort is underway as robustly as it possibly can be.

I have a Brother and a Sister, who live in New York and who have been adversely affected by this storm. They are engaged in helping their neighbors on a daily basis, as their resources allow them to, despite the fact that they have been negatively impacted as well. That's called character. That's called being a Citizen and a Patriot.

My Personal Response to Sandy:

I will be loading my personal aircraft with supplies and staples up to the maximum useful load limits of my aircraft and flying into the New York area, first to assist and comfort my family members and then to do what I can for others on the ground.

I will also be donating all revenues generated by my firm in the month of November and December, to the Red Cross, and I will deliver that check preemptively when I arrive in New York, on Tuesday morning.

We can sit here and attempt to score political points before the Presidential Election, or we can each find a way to help our fellow Citizens who are now in need.

Do what you can to help, instead of being political fire starter.

Interesting. I'd be curious to see what the difference was between this and Hurricane Katrina. I believe all the above-mentioned steps were taken by George W. Bush and the governors, mayors and other political leaders of states impacted by Hurricane Katrina. With, of course, the exception of one Kathleen Blanco and Mayor Nagin.

Bush had two conference calls before the storm, as well as personally called. He held a press conference before the storm telling the people there to please listen to the authorities to get out. Even Max Mayfleid, NHC director, called Nagin and Blanco to stress to get people out. FEMA had provided water and food for 3 days in the stadium for 15,000 people before hand, as it was to be used as a last resort only.
Nagin was worried about hotels being able to sue the city if he evacuated and the storm did not cause the damage is was shown it would. Finally issued an evacuation for some areas less than 18 hours before the storm hit. Blanco was overwhelmed, not prepared. Neither had real plans for what to do if such an event had transpired. Were mistakes made on the federal level? Yes. Were mistakes made by the state and local in La.? Far more than their good decisions. All one has to do is look at what actually happened in Ms., and the other states effected to see the differences, because whether you realize it or not they were hit extremely hard with the flooding surges, yet you heard little about it.
People need to have realistic expectations of what can and can't be done quickly. Do I blame Obama for the hardships there? No, just as I didn't blame Bush. What is sad is our press has agendas to make one look bad while trying to glorify the other. Who does that hurt in the end? Those suffering as they are led to believe that miracles should happen when they can't.
Bush Urges People to Heed Evacuate Orders
Living in a hurricane area, you know it takes days to get help where it is needed, if indeed you get hit hard. It is to be expected. We, in south Florida, watched those that did not prepare, even when warned, screaming for water, and ice, and food within 12 hours after a storm left. Usually here they actually had it available within 18-24. And some will say, well, those people can't afford to have 3-5 days of supplies on hand. We are all told that live in these areas to be prepared by June 1. IF you start buying 1 or 2 extra canned goods, etc. each week in Jan., you will have enough without it breaking the bank. I am sorry, that I do not believe, as I don't think there is anyone that doesn't have 3 days worth of food in their homes if sheltering at home, (and didn't lose it) or those evacuating that can't take that much with them.

Hit twice within 3 weeks of each other, fortunately we planned and got along fine. Had to help some neighbors that did not take it seriously. But that is just what we do. People don't think about the fact if power loss is widespread, you can't get cash to purchase what you need, as most places that open will only be able to accept that as a form of payment until things come back online. Went a total of 23 days without power within 5 weeks. Along coast lines and islands, if people are warned they need to get out, they need to do just that or what has transpired up north is what will happen. The people having trouble are the ones that lost most everything. They need the help, whether they made bad decisions or not. Hopefully those that made bad ones, next time they will listen, though. Even if they did get out, unless they moved all their belongings, which is unrealistic, even they will be suffering for lack of clothing, etc. Unless you happen to have bottomless pockets, which most don't then it can be financially devastating, if you lost your home, or are not allowed to get back to your home, until you can be reimbursed from your insurance company - if you had proper insurance such as flood.
One added element to this storm, is it merged with a n'easter, which has brought cold to people without power.
Don't expect miracles when millions are impacted in a short period of time.

Neighbor helping neighbor is what it should be all about, until people can get back on their feet.

 

[usmcstinger]

Unfortunately, there are some people in this country who are so base, that all they seem to be capable of doing is creating false red herrings about the ground based response to a national crisis. This post is about the nature of the real response to Sandy and some of its key elements, as opposed to the fictional characterization now being projected by some elements in the Media. This post is also about what has already been done (as a matter of fact), some of the things that are now "ongoing," as well as what my personal response to the needs of those impacted by Sandy will be and why.

The country gets hit with the largest weather system in the nation's recorded history, extending at one point all the way from the Caribbean to the coastal edge of New York, having displaced countless thousands of people physically and disrupting utilities to millions more, and all some people can do is tap their political feet looking for the first opportunity to make some off the wall comment about the "response to Sandy," as being "Obama's fault."

The Federal Government's Response to Sandy:

a) The POTUS took initial action to open up early lines of communication with every single Governor that was projected by the United States Weather Service, to be a potential target of Sandy.

b) The POTUS took initial action to inform each Governor whose state was projected to be a target of Sandy, that he would be available to do whatever a President can do in such situations, to ensure that FEMA was as responsive as possible and that the United States Navy and Coast Guard was already on alert.

c) The POTUS took special consideration, based on the United States Weather Service projections that the area of New York and New Jersey, stood the highest mathematical probability for being inside the conical track of Sandy's Eye, to inform those Governors that the President would make every effort to expedite the Federal response to those areas. Three (3) United States Navy vessels were pre-positioned and then moved into the area of the New York harbor, after the passing of Sandy, and are currently being used for staging airborne rescue missions and other airborne relief efforts.

Done.

d) Governor Chris Christie, himself, publicly expressed his satisfaction with the responsiveness and proactive demeanor of the POTUS both prior to and subsequent to Sandy, along with Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

e) The POTUS arranged for FEMA's Assessment Team to be per-posisitioned on the ground before Sandy struck in the areas (New York and New Jersey) where the United States Weather Service projected the highest mathematical probability for storm damage.

Done.

f) The first three (3) steps in FEMA's Response Protocol is to:

- 1. Do no additional harm. Do not put responders in a strategic or tactical position where they are unable to function in their role, as this reduces the response to victims and only serves to increase their suffering. Insure initial storm passage and the low probability for the creation of a second system coupling to the first. Launch initial ground based and aerial assessment of damage (this sub-process is always ongoing).

Done.

- 2. In the event of local water tables that have risen, insure that flood waters have receded sufficient to allow safe passage of ground based response teams and personnel. Coordinate resources to clear streets, roads, bridges and passageways to enable the reach and extension of emergency responders, relief personnel and their equipment.

Ongoing & Persistent.

- 3. Coordinate with local emergency services and initiate first wave of search & rescue operations, including but not limited to: door-to-door searches, open field & street level searches, airborne and underwater searches. Sustain first wave until reasonably confident that no surviving victims remain.

Ongoing & Persistent.


It is the responsibility of the Local Government to re-establish Utilities such as Electricity and Gas. Electrical and Gas services cannot be randomly regenerated, merely because people are complaining to the members of the Media, who then get in front of a camera as fast as they can to tell the entire world that the "FEMA" response is "slow."

Above ground power lines must be evaluated for repair or replacement and load tested before being put back into service. The structures (Homes and Commercial Buildings) that have been physically displaced by the storm, cannot be reconnected to services at all, until they have been rebuilt. All caution must be taken to insure that no health and safety hazards will be the result of resuming either Gas or Electrical services. Doing so, when inappropriate could result in additional deaths. All of this work takes time, as the storm has altered the topology in many affected areas making access to those places that must be evaluated difficult.

Portable power generators can only be deployed after such time has passed that is sufficient to allow for the clearing of obstructions that block the roads, highways, streets, bridges and pathways in which the generators will be placed into service. If you cannot drive down a street, then it is highly unlikely that you will be able to deliver a portable power generator using that same street and/or access way.

The total surface area that has been adversely impacted and physically altered by this storm is massive in both size and scope. The total number of states negatively impacted has been unprecedented in U.S. history. Therefore, it is expected that the aggregate response to such a crisis will be felt as being significantly slower than other weather related crises in the past.

I lived through the Loma Prieta Earthquake of 1989, that devastated parts of the Northern California Bay Area. A portion of the upper deck of the Alameda side of the Bay Bridge collapsed, a large section of a double-deck freeway (Cypress) collapsed crushing people below inside their vehicles, sections of San Francisco were burning to the ground and gas related fires were breaking out in portions of the East Bay. Through it all - people found away to start working together for the common good.

The response in many areas was slow, simply because accessing those areas was difficult. Just because access is difficult, does not mean that a response is not underway:

Quake of 89- A Video Chronicle Part 1 - YouTube

People are suffering after Sandy. People are tired. People are hungry. People are human beings and therefore, they have very human limitations on the amount of suffering they can endure before becoming agitated at the fact that they are suffering. As a direct result they will complain about not receiving enough attention. They will complain about the response time of the relief effort.

The vast majority of them do not understand how the relief operations are organized and executed, nor do they care about such things. All they know is that their neighborhood, their town, their city, their block, or their house are in total disarray and they want things to return back to normal. That sentiment is normal. Many of them are in a severe state of shock and very uncertain about the future. Many of them cannot see beyond the desolation that surrounds them.

All of that is very human and very much expected.

What is NOT expected is for those of us standing on the outside including those members of the Media, to sit back and Monday Morning Quarterback the relief and response effort that literally spans across several different states and impacts literally millions of people. FEMA was on the ground before the storm struck and they, the Red Cross and many different organizations are working tirelessly to respond to the needs of the people who have have their lives literally turned upside down by Sandy.

The President has initiated the most responsive relief effort in the history of FEMA, without question. Nobody who understands what's happening on the ground disputes that fact, other than those attempting to score political points, mere days before an election. Now is not the time to politicize an American tragedy. The damage is widespread and the relief effort is underway as robustly as it possibly can be.

I have a Brother and a Sister, who live in New York and who have been adversely affected by this storm. They are engaged in helping their neighbors on a daily basis, as their resources allow them to, despite the fact that they have been negatively impacted as well. That's called character. That's called being a Citizen and a Patriot.

My Personal Response to Sandy:

I will be loading my personal aircraft with supplies and staples up to the maximum useful load limits of my aircraft and flying into the New York area, first to assist and comfort my family members and then to do what I can for others on the ground.

I will also be donating all revenues generated by my firm in the month of November and December, to the Red Cross, and I will deliver that check preemptively when I arrive in New York, on Tuesday morning.

We can sit here and attempt to score political points before the Presidential Election, or we can each find a way to help our fellow Citizens who are now in need.

Do what you can to help, instead of being political fire starter.

The people in New Jersey ( especially Hoboken ) and Staten Island have not gotten squat. Obama ( As usual ) has made unrealistic promises that he will not be able to keep. His presence in New Jersey was nothing but a back slapping side show. He didn't show up in Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and Long Island.

 

[Katzndogz]

The federal government's response to Sandy was to take pictures, make promises and do nothing. It's the same response the federal government always gives.

What relief that is coming into the area is coming from privately organized relief efforts, not FEMA (which should be dissolved as the expensive inefficiency that it is) and not the now disgraced Red Cross.

 

[Intense]

One difference between Sandy and Katrina was that the Local and State Governments did not mock FEMA and discount the Evacuation requests. All Authorities did work together in preparation, with Sandy. What could be done, was done.