Hurricane Pam Exercise

Key Resources FEMA Global Security GPO http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=13051 Global Security http://www.globalsecurity.org/security/ops/hurricane-pam.htm GPO http://www.gpoaccess.gov/serialset/creports/pdf/hr109-377/pam.pdf

FEMA Disaster Planning Catastrophic disaster planning initiative 25 disaster scenarios Prioritized on risk First scenario - hurricane hitting New Orleans

Hurricane Pam FEMA Exercise 2004 Scenario New Orleans Sustained winds of 120 mph 20 inches of rain in parts of southeast Louisiana Storm surge that topped levees in New Orleans > 1 million residents evacuated 250 Emergency officials from 50 parish, state, federal and volunteer organizations Eight-day exercise State Emergency Operations Center in Baton Rouge

Hurricane Pam Assumptions/Effects 300,000 people would not evacuate in advance Phone and sewer services knocked out Chemical plants flooded 97 percent of all communications down 175,000 injured, 200,000 sick, 60,000 killed Boats and helicopters needed for thousands of rescues because many residents would be stranded by floodwaters Catastrophic flood swaths of southeast Louisiana uninhabitable for more than a year

Pam Exercise Results Medical Immunization plans for rapidly addressing tetanus, influenza and other diseases Re-supply hospitals around the state that would face heavy patient loads Patient movement details and identifies probable locations, such as state university campuses, where individuals would receive care and then be transported to hospitals, special needs shelters or regular shelters as necessary.

Pam Exercise Results Search and Rescue Transportation plan for getting stranded residents out of harm's way. Planners identified lead and support agencies for search and rescue and established a command structure that will include four areas with up to 800 searchers.

Pam Exercise Results Sheltering Need for about 1,000 shelters for a catastrophic disaster Identified 784 shelters Shelters will likely remain open for 100 days Identified the resources necessary to support 1000 shelters for 100 days Staff augmentation Include shelterees in shelter management State resources are adequate to operate shelters for the first 3-5 days Planned how federal and other resources will replenish supplies at shelters

Pam Exercise Results Schools 13,000-15,000 teachers and administrators needed to support affected schools. Strategies for use by local school officials. Staffing strategies include the use of displaced teachers, retired teachers, emergency certified teachers and others eligible for emergency certification. Displaced paraprofessionals would also be recruited to fill essential school positions. Facility options for increasing student population at undamaged schools and prioritizing repairs to buildings with less damage to assist in normalizing operations Placement or development of temporary schools near temporary housing communities built for hurricane victims.

Pam Exercise Results Debris 30 million cubic yards of debris 237,000 cubic yards of household hazardous waste Existing landfills that have available storage space Hazardous waste disposal sites Priorities for debris removal.