THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, July 19, 1994 TAG: 9407190347
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE STONE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 65 lines
The nation's top disaster official said Monday he believes that Hampton Roads is more ready than ever to deal with calamity and that reorganization on the federal level means help would come faster if needed.
``You're better prepared now than you were even just a year ago,'' James L. Witt, head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said of Hampton Roads. And, as for his agency, which is charged with coordinating the federal response to disaster: ``We're better prepared now than ever,'' he said.
Witt's comments came after he spoke to delegates at the Southern Legislative Conference at the Norfolk Waterside Marriott Hotel and the Waterside Convention Center.
Witt said FEMA has moved to a more organized and inclusive form of disaster planning called the ``all hazard concept.'' That means the government's preparations are not scattered willy-nilly to suit a host of possible disaster scenarios.
For instance, there used to be one plan for hurricanes and another for earthquakes. Instead, a single response system has evolved that is intended to handle any type of disaster.
``If we are prepared for any type of hazard, we'll be able to respond more efficiently,'' Witt said. ``We'll have the systems in place.''
During the Reagan and early Bush administrations, FEMA drew heavy criticism that its response to several disasters was slow and tentative. Critics blasted the agency as a bureaucratic backwater overloaded with political hacks with no real understanding of disaster planning.
Witt said that in the first year of the Clinton administration the agency has been revamped and that payoffs are showing.
Last year, for instance, FEMA had disaster teams and supplies positioned in Maryland, ready to head southeast to Hampton Roads and coastal North Carolina if Hurricane Emily came ashore. The storm grazed the Outer Banks, causing extensive damage in Buxton on Hatteras Island, but then turned northeast, sparing most of the area.
Witt said the money allocated to help coastal states prepare for hurricanes has increased to $3 million this year and that $10 million is budgeted next year.
The money is intended to help states with planning, training, disaster plan testing and evacuation coordination. But public education remains a critical element.
``People expect a lot during a disaster,'' Witt said - sometimes much more than they should reasonably expect. And even with the best planning, he said, people should realize that it takes time to mount a regional disaster response.
The best advice has not changed, he said. People should be ready to fend for themselves for at least 72 hours after disaster hits.
Local emergency officials were pleased with Witt's comments.
``It's shaping up a lot better than it used to be in the past,'' said Troy Lapetina, coordinator of emergency services for Norfolk. ``There's a whole new direction about being ready before the storm hits.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
BILL TIERNAN/Staff
James L. Witt, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency,
spoke at a legislative conference held in Norfolk.
by CNB