From the

AP

FEMA Chief Waited Until After Storm Hit

By TED BRIDIS, Associated Press Writer

The government’s disaster chief waited until hours after Hurricane
Katrina had already struck the Gulf Coast before asking his boss to dispatch
1,000 Homeland Security employees to the region — and gave them two days to
arrive, according to internal documents.

Michael Brown, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency,
sought the approval from Homeland Security Secretary Mike Chertoff roughly
five hours after Katrina made landfall on Aug. 29. Brown said that among
duties of these employees was to “convey a positive image” about the
government’s response for victims.

Before then, FEMA had positioned smaller rescue and communications teams
across the Gulf Coast. But officials acknowledged Tuesday the first
department-wide appeal for help came only as the storm raged.

Brown’s memo to Chertoff described Katrina as “this near catastrophic
event” but otherwise lacked any urgent language. The memo politely ended,
“Thank you for your consideration in helping us to meet our
responsibilities.”

The initial responses of the government and Brown came under escalating
criticism as the breadth of destruction and death grew. President Bush and
Congress on Tuesday pledged separate investigations into the federal
response to Katrina. “Governments at all levels failed,” said Sen. Susan
Collins (news, bio, voting record), R-Maine.

Homeland Security spokesman Russ Knocke said Brown had positioned
front-line rescue teams and Coast Guard helicopters before the storm.
Brown’s memo on Aug. 29 aimed to assemble the necessary federal work force
to support the rescues, establish communications and coordinate with victims
and community groups, Knocke said.

Instead of rescuing people or recovering bodies, these employees would
focus on helping victims find the help they needed, he said.

“There will be plenty of time to assess what worked and what didn’t
work,” Knocke said. “Clearly there will be time for blame to be assigned and
to learn from some of the successful efforts.”

Brown’s memo told employees that among their duties, they would be
expected to “convey a positive image of disaster operations to government
officials, community organizations and the general public.”

“FEMA response and recovery operations are a top priority of the
department and as we know, one of yours,” Brown wrote Chertoff. He proposed
sending 1,000 Homeland Security Department employees within 48 hours and
2,000 within seven days.

Knocke said the 48-hour period suggested for the Homeland employees was
to ensure they had adequate training. “They were training to help the
life-savers,” Knocke said.

Employees required a supervisor’s approval and at least 24 hours of
disaster training in Maryland, Florida or Georgia. “You must be physically
able to work in a disaster area without refrigeration for medications and
have the ability to work in the outdoors all day,” Brown wrote.

The same day Brown wrote Chertoff, Brown also urged local fire and rescue
departments outside Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi not to send trucks or
emergency workers into disaster areas without an explicit request for help
from state or local governments. Brown said it was vital to coordinate fire
and rescue efforts.

Meanwhile, the airline industry said the government’s request for help
evacuating storm victims didn’t come until late Thursday afternoon. The
president of the Air Transport Association, James May, said the Homeland
Security Department called then to ask if the group could participate in an
airlift for refugees.

According to Air America Radio, these documents were leaked by a Homeland
Security official. Guess Bush still don’t have those leaks under control.