Was growling over last week’s semi-useless disaster preparedness talk and pondering the wisdom of some of your comments.
Then I came upon this: John Longenecker’s thoughts on why emergency management (EM) “experts” are having such a hard time getting through to the rest of us. (Tip o hat to the Dutchman over on Sipsey Street.)
Longenecker says (in short) that the fact that millions are buying guns shows we’re more than willing to take responsibility and prepare for danger. We’re just not buying the elitist, top-down, “do it to us” (as opposed to “do it with us”) approach to disaster management (DM). Or so he perceives.
Longenecker, who apparently thinks about this a lot, goes so far as to say that gun owners and disaster management pros should get together.
The particular way he envisions this creeps me out just a little:
To ‘act’ means to aid law enforcement in keeping the peace, as another example. Many Sheriffs, for instance, are announcing that they are examining deputizing gun owners, people who pass background checks, people known to the Sheriff, people who know how to use a handgun or rifle and people who can take orders and follow leadership. This is an example of planning disaster management which would include utilization of a disaster’s most understated assets: volunteers.
Turning approved friends-O’-the-Sheriff into a centrally controlled “volunteer” corps working for the gummint to order their fellow citizens around? Uh … no thanks!
But certainly he’s hitting the mark when he says that any approach to DM/EM that looks down on or distrusts We the People is part of the problem. (And the book he mentions, A Paradise Built in Hell: The Extraordinary Communities That Arise in Disaster by Rebecca Solnit has absolutely gone on my must-read list.)
You and I know that we are our own first line of defense in any tough times. We can hope and suppose that neighbors will help neighbors and strangers help strangers. What we really can’t know until something bad happens is whether officials — local or otherwise — will interfere with us or stay out of our way.
Work with us? In an ideal world, sure. But in this world? I don’t know.
Longenecker mentions CPR training as one of the great successes calling on volunteers to handle emergencies. And it is, of course. But then, CPR is one-on-one and doesn’t involve “controversial” skills, actions, or possessions (e.g. firearms, food storage). Nor does it usually get called on at times of mass chaos. Nor does it warp a volunteer into an agent of government — something that, in my mind, destroys the very concept of volunteering.
I admit that if I become a helpless victim of a disaster (and it could happen to the best prepared), I’ll be overwhelmingly grateful for help and I won’t care if it comes “freelance” or from government. I also admit that I’m no expert at handling disasters or even routine emergencies. But when I think of myself as a potential helper, I just can’t see working with anybody’s command-and-control structure. Nor do I think the greatest benefit will ever come from putting the most capable, competent, available volunteers into such a structure.
I don’t know how decent my local DM/EM people are likely to be (guess I’ll know more about that if I take their CERT training this spring). The more I think about state DM/EM officials, the more convinced I am that “incompetent” is perhaps the kindest thing one can say about them. “Dangerous” comes to mind; I’m glad they’re not likely to be in charge of anything if disaster strikes. Let them sit in the state capital an churn out brochures and programs.
It is a problem that so many people don’t even attempt to prepare for disasters, or even hard times.
It is a problem that DM/EM efforts fail to reach so many people.
At the disaster-prep meetings I’ve gone to, I notice that attendees are virtually always already knowledgeable and prepared. They’re just looking for greater depth of information. For plans. And for connections. What we’re given instead are basics designed for those people who aren’t showing up at the presentation.
One part of me thinks the DM/EM managers are wasting a valuable resource by not understanding that the people going to these meetings are all potential volunteers, potentially great resources for drawing in and working with friends, family, and the broader community. That we should be recruited and utilized. Another part of me looks at the way they’re thinking and doesn’t want anything to do with them, anyhow.
One major problem with EM is _management_; they’re taught how to manage, rather than to educate. In fact teaching is not easy. Few know how to teach, and even fewer know how to teach beyond the basics, how to build on what the “pupil” (in this case, community) already knows, how to draw on the experience and knowledge that the community has. Even paid teachers (and even fewer educators) these days rarely understand how to do this. They are only taught to impart information from a sterile position of “teacher at the head of the class”, not to see individual potential in the classroom, or how to parcel out duties when a real emergency occurs.
On the heels of that last sentence, often the “teacher(s)” are different each time (for various reasons), so no one individual or group in EM maintains contact with the members of a given community to know their strengths or weaknesses, to know who is respected, who can organize, who has the wherewithal to round up people or supplies, what businesses can offer what services, etc. All this must be learned at the time of emergency, and that is the wrong time to be trying to put together a team effort.
EM in my area consists of the local volunteer fire department. They are begging for new volunteers right now because of a state mandated program requiring certification. The certification process is so onerous that existing members have dropped out and new people don’t want the hassle. As a result of this top down meddling we are about to lose the station. If that happens we will be forced to rely on the state Dept. of Forestry (now renamed CALFIRE) which is seasonal. It’s almost like they want us to be dependent on the state.
As to the local Dept. of Forestry, they are a joke. Eight years ago when a neighbor stupidly caused a wildfire that burned up through my property destroying a cabin and most of the ponderosa pines and firs, it was only because of the Volunteer Fire crew that my house was saved. As the Dept. of Forestry drove on by my place because it was engulfed in heavy smoke, the local volunteers drove down the 400′ driveway to my house, checked to see if anyone was inside, and then parked at the corner of the house unloading a tanker of water on it while flames surrounded them and the propane tank spewed. Brave men saved my house while government lackeys would have let it burn. But so typical of government everywhere.
You might be underwhelmed by the CERT program. It is good information and very useful, but, unless supported by your local FD and your neighbors it is ineffective and rarely called upon.Really depends on your local community.
There’s nothing to say you can’t use the information they give you and add it to your groups training. I have been through CERT twice now and always learned something of value. There’s good information on how to mark buildings for SAR teams, light SAR techniques, simple triage etc, all are good to know but which forms and how to fill them out, not so important for me. There is an animal rescue element too which is an often neglected aspect of preparedness.
If you want to get a jump on it, take the FEMA -NIMS ( national incident management system) and ICS ( incident command system) courses they offer (for free) online. It will give you an insight into how they respond to any incident, not just FEMA but all official government agencies. They all use these protocols as part of their integration plan. If you plan on being involved with any government agency,during a disaster, you need to be familiar with NIMS and ICS. Some of the information is useful for C2 in disasters as are the table top exercises. It is good to know how they think and plan their operations. For all kinds of of obvious reasons.
Find a copy of your local EOPS (emergency operations plan) that’ll tell you who’s who and who’s responsible for what in your area and where they plan to operate.
Here’s some links to get you started-http://www.fema.gov/national-integration-center
http://training.fema.gov/IS/NIMS.aspx
“Another part of me looks at the way they’re thinking and doesn’t want anything to do with them, anyhow.”
Amen, and that sometimes even includes supposedly private organizations.
I was the shelter nurse for Red Cross in my little community. We would set up a Red Cross emergency shelter during brush fires, earthquakes, etc. We set one up at least once a year just to remain coordinated and in practice. There was a lot of red tape and paperwork associated with being part of the Red Cross thing, but most community members were willing to put up with it because they wanted the sanction and insurance provided by Red Cross.
Years passed… and then we had the worst forest fire ever in the mountains above us. It poured down the side of the mountain and burned into our community. We set up the shelter early, but when we notified the Red Cross HQ, we were told we could not do the shelter any more… our building was no longer considered safe (same building, a large church, which we’d used for years.)
Long story short, they demanded we send people to the Victorville shelter 30 miles away. Oh, and sorry, no handicapped people, no pets and nobody who was sick… What the heck? We had always been able to find community members willing to take in people with pets or special needs, even those who had HORSES. I guess the Victorville bunch thought all of those people would just vanish.
Anyway, we finally told the Red Cross to stick it in their ear (well, something like that), and we did our own shelter without their kind permission. The sheriff’s deputies there were VERY glad because they’d been horrified at the new “rules.” Our town didn’t have any kind of “government,” so there was nothing to get in our way but our own limitations. Oh, and we all were very happy not to be saddled with the insane paperwork that time too. Saved a lot of time and we never talked to the Red Cross again….
We got the job done, and our “Good Neighbors” volunteers managed to help the burned out victims later as well.
So no… becoming part of a bureaucratic set up is not likely to be effective, even if it does not become outright abusive. And those bureaucrats come in all sizes and flavors.
forgot to add this-http://www.fema.gov/community-emergency-response-teams/training-materials
Thank you very much for the kind words, Claire. You’re purely objective and furnish a most welcome analysis. Thank you.
Your post is also comprehensive and thorough. It’s not often I can source a reader who takes the time. Thanks for noticing.
John Longenecker
…”and the kids they dance and shake their bones. While the politicians are throwing stones. Yes, it is all too clear we are on our own. Ashes, ashes all fall down.” Lyrics from Throwing Stones by the Grateful Dead.
My extreme distrust of anything government keeps me away from these types of state-sponsored (taxpayer funded) inept coordinated planning schemes. That distrust took decades of trying to see the good in local .gov efforts to prepare for and manage any disaster/chaos/emergency type situation. At best they offer sophomoric platitudes and at worst they are making lists of who to hunt when the SHTF. Your description of the previous “class” you attended, Claire confirms my my previous experience with same. Everything they present is dumbed down to the lowest common denominator. That is because they believe they are so much better “educated” on any given subject than the unwashed masses for whom they purport to show concern.
Consider the Snohomish Co. (Washington) Sheriff’s Office program named the “CITIZENS’ ACADEMY”. This was during 1997. Post Waco and Ruby Ridge. I was involved with a group of very concerned citizens who sought to gain information about how local LEO’s would respond to certain situations. We were active and engaged. We become despised and targeted by local LEO’s. We did not want an incident like either of the aforementioned to occur in our county. We wanted the sheriff (chief law man in the jurisdiction) to understand our concerns and respect the wishes of citizens to avoid/prevent such heavy-handedness.
Myself and an associate were invited to attend this so called Citizens’ Academy. It was slated for Thursday evening for 12 weeks, 3 1/2 hours each session. Billed as a program to “provide citizens an opportunity to see and experience law enforcement from the inside and give them an overall understanding of the comprehensive training and inherent dangers and stress of law enforcement.” You may read that as a taxpayer funded public relations & propaganda program for the all ready out of control local sheriffs department. Though that was not my mindset at the beginning, I was convinced of it afterward. The sheriff hand selected 25 citizens (most with ties to or a bias in favor of the sheriff’s department) to attend.
We were told of the “mission and values” of the department (hollow platitudes). What it cost to put a new deputy on the street ($98,000 per year!) and that this county had, at the time, over 500 of these badges roaming the county! We were shown lovely slide presentations about their exemplary search and rescue team (run mostly by volunteers and their own dogs). Deputies spoke of traffic stops and high speed pursuits all in from the perspective of LEO’s and without coming out and saying the implication was that citizen’s had better do as they were told or else! We heard from the prosecutor’s office and how they were “pleased to tell that in Washington State, they did not use the Grand Jury System”! Yes, read that one again. They actually boasted about that. I could go on, but I think you get the point.
Even when the .gov folks purport to be lending a hand they are either woefully inadequate or malignant in their intentions.
In my admittedly cynical world view, I expect when things turn bad, the .gov folks will be spending a lot of time and energy and your tax dollars to prop up their interests, that is continuity of governance. They won’t be trying to save any of us mere mundanes.
As to the people in Olympia and the possibility of them managing an emergency or disaster. I have one word: Lahar! Good luck with that.
Me? I am nearing the 6 decade milestone and none of this shit really matters. I do what I can to prepare for the most likely scenarios, and their are many. I hope to come out on the other side of whatever comes down. I would like to have a voice in the rebuilding, but if I don’t make it, just dump my ashes in the compost pile and move on.
Here is a clear description of the ICS command structure, with much good information for adapting it to the freedom community.
Liberty Incident Command System Part 1 [links to part 2 – 4 on this page]
http://www.thepriceofliberty.org/ICSpart1.htm
To effectively work together, freedom lovers need to form local teams and networks that are trained in the ICS. Individuals can form teams using a pyramid system of recruiting a group of friends who will in turn form their own teams by recruiting at least five members, and so on. Grassroots groups and organizations can also adopt the ICS. The teams can be linked together in county or regional networks using email, phone lists, mobile phones, Family Radio Service and ham two-way radios, and alphanumeric pagers.
The beauty of the ICS is that each of the teams or grassroots groups can decide what issues are most important to them and what activities they feel would be most beneficial. The different groups can form mutual aid agreements to provide cooperation, assistance, and protection to each other. The teams and groups can learn to use their ICS training by providing assistance in the event of a disaster such as a tornado or flood, or helping with community activities.
John Longenecker — You are very gracious (particularly considering that I misspelled your name!). You really bring up topics that needed airing.
It’s seriously troubling that there’s so much unease and distrust between two factions that ought to be working toward the same goal — preparedness. I’m glad you opened the discussion.
Excellent voice-of-experience responses!
I’m not sure that govt led DM/EM is really geared towards individuals. I think it is more designed around training organizations. Individuals are rarely considered by institutions, unless they come in a large number and are easily bundled and labeled.
It is possible to help with a disaster without being certified, trained or part of an organization, govt or private. During disasters within our state I’ve been able to help by marshalling food and getting it to the right people Other times it has been helping to gather and disseminate accurate information. Most times it has been finding small places that I can help, frequently it’s just family to family, not hierarchy in place just willingness to help.
Amen to MamaLiberty. The above “deputizing” sounds too much like a recipe for more good ‘ole boy cronyism. I looked forward to reading One Second After. As I read through that book, I was completely put off by the banding together of the usual suspects, police, sheriffs, military people, etc and it sounded like the underlying thought about the survivalists was a bit of contempt (they’ll come crawling to us when they run out/get their livestock stolen!).
I’ve been a volunteer for local assistance, but will not go back. Too many rules that don’t apply to our specific area, and too much red tape/liability. I’ll help who I help, and make connections with people I trust. I can guarantee you they won’t be gov workers.
The fantasy that emergencies and disasters can be “managed” is almost funny. You can manage your response to them- on an individual basis- but one size does not fit all, and flexibility that comes from “bottom up” is critical. But that’s not what giant bureaucracies are good at.
C.W. wrote about how others thought: “gun owners and disaster management pros should get together.”
Creepy is right.
Reminds me of this title and some of the contents:
We’re From the Government; We’re Here to “Help” You to Death
“… the police weren’t investigating a crime. They were carrying out a much more dangerous function: They were there to “help” Stuckey, whether or not this would be appropriate, and her desires were irrelevant to the matter. …
Whenever the State’s armed enforcers are deployed to “help” somebody, and the target of official benevolence doesn’t play along, eventually the matter will reach the “enough is enough” stage. At this point, the government’s emissaries of coercive kindness will have no choice but to kill the object of their humanitarian concern.” …
http://freedominourtime.blogspot.com/2010/04/helped-to-death.html
I’m also reminded of the descriptions after Katrina on the pages of the website with no name.
Scary stuff all around, and monsters around every bend.
Also, I really liked this approach:
“I’ll help who I help, and make connections with people I trust. I can guarantee you they won’t be gov workers.”
I’ve never been to a disaster prep course, but I’ve been through a couple of disasters, Hurricane Andrew back in 2000 and Sandy now, so I’ve had some experience.
I only read the one Longenecker piece, but he has it right when he mentions elitist attitude and herding cats. DM/EM professionals are no different than any other “expert”, they are absolutely certain their way is the best and only way to do something, citizen input be damned. I saw this after Sandy, when people were barred from even seeing their homes for 17 days while the DMs tried to come up with an access plan. Like they didn’t expect that 10,000 homeowners would want to see their homes after the storm? Their plans seem to be drawn without consideration of the human element at all. The people are just an “inconvenience” to be dealt with.
But he’s wrong about volunteers. Maybe a generation ago, but today, so many leos and tptb show up for a disaster, there’s really no room for volunteers. Yes, the Red Cross shows up, and yes, they’re volunteers, but they have the certain things they do, and do them without supervision. 200 people showing up at town hall saying “what can we do?” in the wake of a flood, well it takes manpower and resources to figure out what they could do.
My disaster experience has been confined to mostly-urban areas, but its shown me that volunteers are looked upon by the “professionals” as mostly unwanted, bothersome meddlers, a step above looters. They’re to be coddled and given some unimportant task to make them feel like they’ve done something, but the resource required outweighs the benefit provided. The DM/EM job would be so much easier without people, especially ones wanting to help.
“200 people showing up at town hall saying “what can we do?” in the wake of a flood, well it takes manpower and resources to figure out what they could do.”
This is where local organization comes in. The community should have a well-defined plan laid out on paper – *before* an emergency takes place. Who does what and who *doesn’t* poke his nose into another department’s business should be established pre-crisis. (This includes fire, police, and EMTs, town counsels, and prima donnas – male or female – who are used to making the rules.)
Heinlein was correct in espousing jack-of-all-trades for daily living and for survival, but in a community emergency, you need to be aware of specialization – even among the peons. One person may be able to face a medical problem head on, while another may be hesitant or squeamish about blood, guts, or a childbirth at the inopportune time. The squeamish may act as runners or phone/info handlers or babysitters or cooks, etc. while the less squeamish may help closer to ‘ground zero’. An organizational plan would know who can do what, and where to be reached.
This plan does not have to be directed from the top down – each designee could jump in and start his job as soon as the emergency occurs, and also make contact with others directly above and below him on the scale of activity. We wait too long for others to tell us what to do.
While American ‘society’ has certainly changed in general, I don’t believe local communities have changed that much. In an emergency, we still care about our families and friends, and are anxious to get our neighborhoods and towns back to normal as quickly as possible. For this, we would gladly jump in – if we knew what to do. But town and County PTB often wait for state help, and states wait for federal help, because they’ve been conditioned to. The populace pays for that wait by not getting back to normal in a timely manner, or by being chastised if they do attempt to help themselves.
I’ve seen this happen in my own (former) community, when everyone was told to wait for TPTB to make the decisions after three tornados blew through one night. A middle school was devastated and 2 1/2 years later the ‘authorties’ are still fighting over where to re-build, where the money comes from, and which property gets bought (for tax breaks) – and the kids have been farmed out to trailers on high school property for three years, while the former school site remains vacant and unused because it’s more politically expedient to re-build somewhere else.
Down here, on our barrier island there is a well-experienced EM team. Locals all know the organization, authority, communication channels, etc. We all know the critical systems & vulnerabilities of our micro-area, and how we’re connected to the rest of the island… and the mainland. For the most part we operate independently of each other – neighbors in a community working together to clear roads so the power co. can get in, even side by side with the fire depts. Neighbors provide cold drinks and sandwiches to the crews.
Where things start to get a little crazy at times, is when outside agencies – the state, coast guard, National Park Service do their territorial challenge dance. Then communications fall apart, things are ignored or “miscommunicated”… and it falls to neighbors and “those who can” to act with common sense — even when it gets them in trouble with the authorities. Case in point: Hatteras Island was cut off after Irene, because Rt. 12 was breached and the only ferry that could run, was on one of the longer routes to the mainland. Their generators weren’t firing up and they had very limited power. Local fishermen – who know these waters in their sleep – got together to make an ice run to the island… but the Coast Guard wouldn’t let them dock at the best location, until they’d “cleared it” and given permission. So the fishermen showed up at Billy Bob’s dock out back of his house, & the Hatterasmen, unloaded and distributed ice. Saw the fishermen getting pizza a local spot with gas ovens, taking cash only for carry outs. Overheard the story, then heard it on the radio later.
The hams get active, there’s a 24-7 radio call in program to share information and make requests (and complaints) for help — people would offer to lend spare generators, chainsaws, etc. Word gets out and people take care of each other. The Red Cross, in particular, are despised here. They show up, do their photo-ops, and are gone. The Baptist Church Men’s Group and Salvation Army were here for well on a year, helping people rebuild their homes, if they were some of the lucky ones who got their FEMA checks. The damage was just as bad on the mainland – where the people who wait tables and clean vacation homes, and fish or crab for a living reside. Some of those people still aren’t able to be back in their own homes… because of RED TAPE. So the community has year-round help funds, the beach pantry, and other types of resources to help support those folks and “git R done”.
It’s not perfect by any means. Lots of upset locals, that only 24 hrs after the state of emergency was lifted, TPTB started letting tourists back on because it was Labor Day weekend. Not all; but enough tourists expected “the beach as usual” and were pretty ugly to those trying to carry on normally, regardless… that the authorities got an earful. Thankfully, there were also stories of amazing kindness and people on vacation pitching in, donating goods & time, and helping out.
This is an interesting thing to consider, and I’ve added it to my personal Wiki. I’m not sanquine about deputizing, too many possible downsides. But there are examples of private/public cooperation in emergencies, which show that it can work well, in some instances. Off the top of my head, I’m thinking of the 4-Wheel Drive Club organizing to deliver food and medicine during severe weather. Sure, it doesn’t necessarily require gov involvement, but if they’ve closed the roads, well, having them know you’re on an organized relief effort helps avoid butting heads. The other well known case is ham radio volunteers working comms.
And, completely unrelated, I just have to mention this cat amusement.
Geez, I can’t believe I’m even more cynical about this stuff than Claire! 😉
“It is a problem that so many people don’t even attempt to prepare for disasters, or even hard times.
It is a problem that DM/EM efforts fail to reach so many people.”
Could it be that the former problem is actually *caused* by the existence of “official” DM efforts? After all, why bother with spending time learning this stuff yourself when govt will “take care” of you? (Not to mention the fact you’ve already paid for it in your taxes.) Govt tries to “help” with some societal function, and always ends up displacing it with their own bureaucratic version of the same thing. The volunteerism gets sucked out of it.
I asked my neighbor about joining our volunteer fire department to get connected with my little community (he was a member there). Come to find out, this so-called “volunteer” department was a top-down state organization, the members were paid stolen taxpayer dollars and even got pensions. The manual and process for learning to be a fireman was absurd. When I found all this out I told him to forget it, I was not joining, but to give me a holler if he ever needed a body to help drag a hose or something. Sheesh!