Episode: Will We Do Better Next Time?

Jim is the former editor of Popular Mechanics, where he helped reposition that century-old brand to become a major voice on contemporary tech issues. He currently co-hosts the How Do We Fix It? podcast and is working on a book about man-made disasters. Previously, Jim was executive editor at National Geographic Adventure. He’s the monthly tech columnist for Commentary Magazine and is with the Manhattan Institute, the most important urban policy think tank in the U.S.

Host:: Dan Senor

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Tedley@Tedley5y

For anyone who listened to this, Dan and James were unsure of the responsibility of the federal govt and FEMA when a disaster happens. In case you are unfamiliar with those responsibilities, here are 4 tweets I sent to Dan:

I want to provide some info regarding the role of the federal govt and FEMA during a disaster. The nation has an emergency management system called the National Incident Management System (NIMS).

NIMS is based on lessons learned from Hurricane Katrina. It specifies that the federal govt will generally be in a supporting and coordinating role in response to a disaster. It is the local municipality that almost always has primary responsibility within its boundaries.

NIMS brings together the different responders to a disaster. If the municipality needs support to effectively respond to some disaster, one of the primary sources for support would be from its governor. The feds would provide support if the governor requests it.

As background, I was an Emergency Manager for the Navy. For more info about relationships between different govt organizations in NIMS, click the link in the first paragraph of this webpage and see pages 47-49. For more history on the creation of NIMS, check out these lessons learned.

Discussion (1)

To read this bio, please join Ricochet.
Tedley@Tedley5y
For anyone who listened to this, Dan and James were unsure of the responsibility of the federal govt and FEMA when a disaster happens. In case you are unfamiliar with those responsibilities, here are 4 tweets I sent to Dan:
I want to provide some info regarding the role of the federal govt and FEMA during a disaster. The nation has an emergency management system called the National Incident Management System (NIMS).
NIMS is based on lessons learned from Hurricane Katrina. It specifies that the federal govt will generally be in a supporting and coordinating role in response to a disaster. It is the local municipality that almost always has primary responsibility within its boundaries.
NIMS brings together the different responders to a disaster. If the municipality needs support to effectively respond to some disaster, one of the primary sources for support would be from its governor. The feds would provide support if the governor requests it.
As background, I was an Emergency Manager for the Navy. For more info about relationships between different govt organizations in NIMS, click the link in the first paragraph of this webpage and see pages 47-49. For more history on the creation of NIMS, check out these lessons learned.