5 Lessons Learned from Hurricane Katrina
- Cities Rely on Each Other
- Businesses Need Contingency Plans
- Forge Partnerships Before Disasters Strike
- Individuals Need a Plan of Action Now
- Service Disruptions May Last for Months
Hurricane Katrina was one of the biggest, long-lasting and costly natural disasters in the United States, and these five things that we learned from Hurricane Katrina can be used to mitigate the effects of future disasters. There will certainly be additional natural and man-made disasters affecting densely-populated areas of the United States in the future. Keeping these five things that we learned from Hurricane Katrina in mind could make future recovery efforts faster and more effective.
1. Cities Rely on Each Other
A big lesson that New Orleans learned as a city is that it cannot deal with a disaster on its own. The city’s officials learned that they would have to rely on other cities for personnel, equipment, expertise, communications and more. Building trust and cooperating are two keys to surviving the next Hurricane Katrina, whether that disaster will be a hurricane, flood, earthquake or something else.
2. Businesses Need Contingency Plans
Businesses need contingency plans that account for any possibility of what could go wrong. Their plans need to include continuity of operations, supply chain management, communications, relocation options and more. Individuals who could not leave the Hurricane Katrina disaster area experienced the effects of a lack of operational grocery stores, hardware stores, dental and medical care and other essentials for months and even years after the floodwaters dissipated.
3. Forge Partnerships Before Disasters Strike
In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, businesses not even within the disaster zone experienced a large decrease in their revenue. Places such as Baton Rouge had a 50 percent decline in business sales, explains Fortune. The leaders of Baton Rouge did not realize beforehand how interconnected their businesses were with those in New Orleans. This lesson has inspired the business leaders of different cities to create strategic partnerships. They realize that their interconnections put them all at risk when one of their members has a problem. By working together, they can decrease losses.
4. Individuals Need a Plan of Action Now
Hurricane Katrina had a considerable death toll. Many people could not or chose not to heed the warnings of city officials to leave New Orleans and the surrounding areas. Individuals need to have an evacuation plan in place before disaster strikes. Those plans should include what to do if everyone in the household is at different places when a disaster hits. Each family member should have a person to contact in order to let others know that they are safe.
5. Service Disruptions May Last for Months
According to the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council, disruptions in basic services lasted for many months in the areas impacted by Hurricane Katrina. Residents need to be prepared for not having cellphone service, electricity or gasoline. Disruptions in mail delivery, internet service, and television broadcast signals also impaired the delivery of essential information. People need to be prepared with alternative methods of communicating. They should also have essential supplies such as a radio and batteries for receiving alerts and emergency messages.
Hurricane Katrina’s effects taught individuals, families, and the government a lot of lessons. Those lessons should be used in order to plan for future disasters. Each of these five things we learned from Hurricane Katrina can be used to save lives and reduce damage in the future.