Natural disasters have become more rampant in the world today, and the government is mandated to bare a large portion of the related losses that come with it (Cheatham, Healy & Kuusinen, 2015). State governments remain at the forefront of disaster management efforts. Their response planning aims at coming up with guidelines on whom to contact and what to do to minimize losses in case of a disaster. It also aims at protecting any of the people that shall have been caught up in disaster struck areas and their properties as well. Ultimately, post-disaster recovery planning helps to identify needs of the people in the communities affected by the disaster in order to stabilize their lives (O’Hanlon & Budosan, 2011, p. 10). The federal government’s response has been unsatisfactory at times, and there have been calls to let other institutions such as the state governments, and charity organizations handle the process. Federal governments have problems harnessing information and acting upon widespread information in a disaster recovery operation compared to institutions such as local government (Labadie, 2008, p. 584)
Following the Hurricane Sandy in New York, the first response on the part of the state was to ensure safety maintenance for the people. “ Devastating flooding and widespread power outages meant that many people did not have television or Internet access to obtain news (NCBI, 2014). The state then had to step in to restore this critical infrastructure so that processes could go back to normal. The state government also mobilized recovery organizations such as the Red Cross Society and community organizations to help in whatever ways that they could. Individuals also required post crisis counseling. Most people were shook by the disaster in question and it was only good that they receive counseling help to reduce the chances of them getting traumatized. This was done through group counseling, community networking for information sharing, and alerts and also in form of public education. The disaster recovery process also involved the maintenance of a good healthcare system with no interruptions to take care of any casualties.
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An intermediate recovery process should involve more infrastructure restoration for amenities such as roads and bridges destroyed by the Hurricane. Local businesses should also be given all the support that they may need to get back on their feet in the days following the disaster. When a hurricane or say an earthquake hits, properties get destroyed and for economic prosperity to be restored, these businesses have to be supported up until they are fully operational. The United States disaster recovery plan thusly, emphasizes the building infrastructure that is able to meet current needs and mitigate damage done in future by such disasters. The cost of building a property that can withstand the next storm or flood is prohibitively very high (White, 2015). In addition, the State has to come up with an immediate housing solution for the people that have had their houses destroyed by the disaster and ultimately, help them to rebuild permanent structures later on. After a disaster, The United States carries out a lot of public awareness programs and give the people basic coping skills in case of a disaster.
States are able to identify specific needs of those affected in a disaster and it is then prudent that they be given the full mandate to control such situations. Non-governmental organizations have also played a big role in recovery during disasters in the United States by giving financial aid, food supplies, and emergency shelters. Organizations such as Red Cross provide crucial assistant that help communities return to their normal lives after disasters such as hurricane Katrina, Sandy, and they deserve to be involved in the planning process. All new and future houses and other infrastructure in the United States should be built in such a way that they can withstand these natural disasters.
References
Cheatham, Ben. Healy, Anne & Kuusinen, Becca. (2015) Improving Disaster Recovery: Lessons Learned in the United States. McKinsy&Company
Labadie, John. (2008) "Auditing of post‐disaster recovery and reconstruction activities", Disaster Prevention and Management: An International Journal, Vol. 17 Iss: 5, pp.575 – 586 http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/09653560810918612
NCBI. (2014) Huricane Sandy Experience:n Disaster Recovery Focused on Children and Families. National Centre for Biotechnology Information . Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK195872/
O’Hanlon, Katherine & Budosan, Boris. (2011) Post-Disaster Recovery: A Case Study of Human Resource Deployment in the Health Sector in Post-Conflict Kosovo. Prehosp Disaster Med Vol 26, Iss 1. Pp. 7-14
White, Gillian. (2015) A Long Road Home: The systems in place to provide aid after natural disasters often fail those who need help the most. Theatlantic.com Retrieved from https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/08/hurricane-katrina-sandy-disaster-recovery-/400244/
