Learning from Katrina: Tough Lessons in Preparedness and Emergency Response

Refugees walking out of flooded New OrleansHurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast on August 29, 2005, and earned a place in history as the most costly and destructive natural disaster to occur in the U.S.  The impact was widespread, affecting thousands of people in Katrina’s path, first responders and government agencies, and many communities across the nation that provided shelter for evacuees and assisted in response activities. 

This was an unprecedented test of our public health system's preparedness and response capabilities.  Challenges in mass evacuations, communications, and environmental health and safety issues exposed vulnerabilities in disaster preparedness and planning across all levels of government. 

In this program we discuss the tough lessons learned and share the experiences of public health leaders and community partners in surviving and responding to a disaster named Katrina. 

Goal

This program seeks to increase knowledge and awareness of the critical lessons learned in the response to Hurricane Katrina and enable participants to apply this knowledge to best practices in community preparedness. 

Objectives

  1. Describe three communication problems that challenged the Katrina disaster response.
  2. Identify three concerns in evacuating vulnerable populations from a disaster area.
  3. Describe two strategies to prevent infectious disease outbreaks.
  4. Describe the public health response when hospital systems are overwhelmed. 
  5. Describe two factors that impacted coordination between federal, state, and local public health partners.
  6. Discuss the need to anticipate behavioral reactions to a disaster.

Target Audience

Leaders, managers, and professionals from local and state health departments, hospitals, community-based health organizations, boards of health, medical services, emergency services, law enforcement, federal agencies, academic institutions and others who are interested in public health preparedness and the emergency response to disasters.