New type of commander may avoid Katrina-like chaos

The Defense Department is grooming a new type of commander to coordinate the military response to domestic disasters, hoping to save lives by avoiding some of the chaos that plagued the Hurricane Katrina rescue effort.

The officers, called dual-status commanders, would be able to lead both active-duty and National Guard troops — a power that requires special training and authority because of legal restrictions on the use of the armed forces on U.S. soil.

Source

The U.S. Northern Command, with headquarters at Peterson Air Force Base, Colo., began training dual-status commanders last year. Northern Command was created after the 2001 terrorist attacks to defend the U.S. homeland and help civilian authorities handle domestic crises like Katrina

Dual-status commanders have been used in disaster drills and at planned events, including the 2004 summit in Georgia, but Northern Command officials say they haven't yet been tested in a real crisis.

Thought this was an interesting development to share. I'm all for cutting through the bureaucratic heaps of red tape, yet I'm wondering if that is the very reason it's taken this long to implement the changes. It seems they give contradictory information within the article as to when this training program really was undertaken. Was it 2010 or 2004? And if it is the latter, then did it take 6-7 years to assess the success of the training programs and give the green light? If so, then it seems the chain-of-command decision making needs some work as well.

Interesting... I think one of the legal issues is posses commitatus, which prevents active duty military from engaging in civilian law enforcement functions. State guard units are exempt from that act because they answer directly to the Govenor as their commander in chief.

Katrina was a disaster since Gov. Blanko refused to turn State units over to federal command, and Bush refused to federalzie them (even though he had no legal grounds to do so since the city nor state were in a state of rebeliion or refusing to enforce laws fairly).

FEMA has their new director, who has completely changed the manner in which FEMA works and operates, most of it based on lessons learned from Katrina as well.

Im all for planning and prevention in order to assist the people in an efficient and safe manner while being able to assist with recovery, rescue and aid delivery.

Seeing the Joplin Tornado first hand and see the response afterwards, I was impressed. At no point has there been any breakdowns with supplies, safety etc etc etc. With over 1500 law enforcement and national guards troops present for security, at no point did it feel like we were under marshal law. A curgew was in place for just the affected areas, and even then people who lived in those areas still had access.

When one idea didnt work, it was immediately scrapped and others brought to the table.

I am glad the government is taking this seriously and trying to adopt a program that interfaces well with local and state plans.

Its a good continuation and refinement of the plans in place. I look forward to seeing how tis plays out.

Originally posted by Xcathdra
FEMA has their new director, who has completely changed the manner in which FEMA works and operates, most of it based on lessons learned from Katrina as well.

Im all for planning and prevention in order to assist the people in an efficient and safe manner while being able to assist with recovery, rescue and aid delivery.

Seeing the Joplin Tornado first hand and see the response afterwards, I was impressed. At no point has there been any breakdowns with supplies, safety etc etc etc. With over 1500 law enforcement and national guards troops present for security, at no point did it feel like we were under marshal law. A curgew was in place for just the affected areas, and even then people who lived in those areas still had access.

When one idea didnt work, it was immediately scrapped and others brought to the table.

I am glad the government is taking this seriously and trying to adopt a program that interfaces well with local and state plans.

Its a good continuation and refinement of the plans in place. I look forward to seeing how tis plays out.

I have trained to be a disaster response team volunteer for the past 6 months.

went to the tornado hit area of Massachusetts.
as a red cross volunteer.

the 4 hour online classes are rough, but the live classes at the local civil defense, i really like.

and learning Red Cross animal first aid, priceless.

few people realize how much planning and trainning it takes to avoid another Katrina.

reply to post by citizen6511


Out of curiosity, how long does the volunteer training program last until you become certified? You mentioned six months...

As I stated earlier, I'm all for anything that reduces the red tape/response time for emergencies, yet it would seem that if reduction in response delay is the ultimate goal, as Katrina in 2005 highlighted, why is it taking so long for the gov't agencies to respond to the clear need to do things in a better, speedier way? Especially in light of the fact that per the source, training for this position began in 2001, was utilized successfully in a non-emergency sitruation in Ga. in 2004, was not taken advantage of for Katrina in 2005, then new-additional-revised (?) training was implemented in 2010.

I'm not thumping on the Feds for doing something to make the situation less complicated, still it's very oxymoronic that it's taken them 5-10 years to change the way things work so the process can be sped up. It's like a bad case of "We need to hurry, but wait a minute..."

"We believe that the right person 99 percent of the time to command the entire military response inside a state is a National Guard officer who is from that state, is appointed by the governor and understands that state and has been trained by the federal side to understand the federal side of this kind of response better than almost any federal officer would," Winnefeld said.

I was initially wary of the idea of a dual commander, but that statement from Admiral Winnefeld, Northern Command, makes me feel a little better about it. I spent 45 days in and around the city of New Orleans after the hurricane with my California National Guard unit, and it was total chaos. We were isolated from the military chain of command for the first three weeks, riding with the State Troopers, doing foot patrols, searching houses, evacuations, and helping civil authorities as we could. When we finally established a chain of command with the National Guard, we started running into the 82nd Airborne everywhere we went, doubling up on things.

There was a definite need for better leadership, and not just in the military sector, but local law enforcement as well. Except for the State Troopers and ICE, the other agencies I saw out there were worse than keystone kops. I felt as though we were there to protect the citizens from the NOPD and other vigilante units as much as from any looters. A dual military commander does not address the issue of a hostile, incompetent or out-of-control local law enforcement agency that cannot be made to comply with strategic decisions made by coordinating authorities in an emergency, nor is there any mention of how to deal with private security firms operating in a disaster area under state military authority. We encountered several private security firms with armored vehicles, body armor, sub-machine guns, and absolutely no interest in talking with us or cooperating with us. They just rolled on through and did whatever they wanted, assisting no one but their wealthy clients, who were already safely out of the city, in securing their private estates and homes. They were lucky we didn't shoot 'em before we figured out who they were.

Bottom line is, you can't rely on anyone to rescue you, so be prepared. The Guard will be there quick, but we all need to get to know our neighbors and come together as a community before disasters happen.

Originally posted by ladyjem
reply to post by citizen6511

 

Out of curiosity, how long does the volunteer training program last until you become certified? You mentioned six months...

some classes can be taken on line, ICS-100,ICS-700, which give the basic structure of who does what.
staying out of everybody's way while doing your assigned task, basically.
FEMA .

takes 3 to 4 hrs each.

some communities have much better civil defence than others, so i went to next city for classes.
this can be from operating a power saw, to large animal rescue, animal first aid, setting up a shelter.

a friend that I've done volunteer work with during the past 10 years, started with Disaster Animal Response Team, and ended doing the emergency response plan for a children's hospital and a large dental clinic.

we are required to do three training sessions a year, but you will likely do much more.

as to how much time, it depends on what organization you will volunteer for.
and how fast they can schedule classes

I'd say 2 to 4 months and you get your ID.



then some classes are given by red cross and other non profit groups.

don't know if this is everywhere, but i did a criminal court record check.CORI.

check the FEMA site, and when you see how much trainning they offer, in how many categories, could keep someone busy forever.
FEMA