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By Judy Bell, CEM
Last week, we all watched with horror and a sense of helplessness
as the 72-hour clock ticked away. As the Gulf Coast experienced its "worst
case" scenario, desperation and panic drove people to take whatever actions
were necessary to survive. Due to their isolation, those who were experiencing
the hardships had no way of knowing about the massive recovery effort
that was underway. Furthermore, it didn't matter how massive the effort
was. In any disaster, great harm is done any time people are separated
from their life-sustaining necessities.
Now it will take months to discover what caused that 72-hour
clock to tick so interminably long. New "lessons learned" will create
lists of action items to streamline the recovery process. Whatever the
findings, it is clear that a coordinated community response is not adequate
for protecting life-sustaining necessities in a "worst case" scenario.
For years, local, state, and federal agencies have preached
the "72-hour Rule," which requires citizens to be self-sustaining for
3 days after a disaster. In support of that rule, they have launched massive
public education programs aimed at equipping citizens to be self sustaining.
Some citizens have listened and heeded the warnings, particularly when
their "worst case" risks were earthquakes that provide no warning before
they strike. Others have watched during lesser disasters, noting the coordinated
public relief efforts that can quickly deliver medical assistance, food,
water, shelter, and other basic necessities. But as we saw last week,
coordinated public relief efforts easily bog down when the "worst case"
scenario occurs.
Every emergency management professional dreads the consequences
of a "worst case" disaster. That is why we plan, test, critique, and improve
plans. That is also why we preach the 72-hour rule. But as Hurricane Katrina
has now shown, in a "worst case" scenario, that rule does not provide
the level of protection we need. It's time to focus on a better way to
think about life safety.
Remember 15 years ago, when our profession thought that
being able to restore critical systems and telecommunications within 72
hours was acceptable? In those days, we defined what we did as "disaster
recovery" instead of "business continuity". Then our industry began to
shift its thinking as we realized that it would be far better to continue
operating than to recover from interrupted operations. In order to comply,
critical businesses like banks and utilities were forced to change their
critical processes to ensure continued operations. In the area
of life safety, they invested in advance to purchase provisions for employees,
to make sure their basic needs would be provided for if they are trapped
at work.
That is the lesson we must all learn from Hurricane Katrina.
The 72-hour rule requiring citizens to be self-sustaining on their own
is no longer realistic. Disasters of the magnitude we just witnessed will
continue. When it comes to human needs, we must create solutions in advance
that will provide continuity for life-sustaining necessities, and this
continuity must persist until organized relief can arrive. Everyone should
take action now, whether we're in the public or private sector, to be
a part of that solution. The phrase "plan today…survive tomorrow" has
never been truer than now.
About the Author
Judy Bell is president and
CEO of Disaster Survival Planning Network, an international consulting
firm that has been assisting businesses, utilities, government agencies,
colleges and universities, and community organizations in preparing enterprise-wide
business continuity programs since 1988. She is a Certified Emergency
Manager (CEM) through the International Association of Emergency Managers
(IAEM).
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