Posted on 09/12/2005 1:17:49 PM PDT by RadicalSon2
Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco knows where to turn in times of crisis.
She hired James Lee Witt Sept. 3 to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Remember him?
President Bush does.
"I have to pay the administration a compliment," he said in 2000 during his first candidate debate with Vice President Al Gore. "James Lee Witt of FEMA has done a really good job of working with governors during times of crisis."
"Really good job" is an understatement. FEMA was once a joke. Its top jobs were dumping grounds for political henchmen. Clinton made the FEMA director a Cabinet position.
During 348 disasters -- including the Oklahoma City bombing -- Witt proved FEMA was a model of efficiency. Even Bush sang its praises.
So how did Bush reward Witt for his exemplary performance? He canned him.
As soon as Bush took office, he appointed his old campaign manager Joe Allbaugh as FEMA director. Allbaugh left in 2003 to work as a lobbyist for reconstruction contracts in Iraq.
He was replaced by (God help us all) Allbaugh's buddy Michael Brown. Brown has no experience in disaster management. Before coming to FEMA, he was commissioner of judges at the International Arabian Horse Association.
In fact, five of eight top Federal Emergency Management Agency officials got their jobs with virtually no experience in handling disasters.
Along with Brown, FEMA Chief of Staff Patrick J. Rhode and Deputy Chief of Staff Brooks D. Altshuler were Bush campaign cronies.
Few people -- not even the president -- deny FEMA and the federal government badly bungled its response to Hurricane Katrina. Thousands of people died who might have been saved if federal officials pulled their heads out of their you-know-whats.
A ship with 600 hospital beds sat idle in the Gulf of Mexico while children were left to drown in flood waters that had become open sewers. That's just one among countless examples of official idiocy.
Some people claim it's too early to cast blame. Oh, really?
What more could Brown do to prove he's incompetent? Conservatives carp about the death of personal responsibility -- at least in other people.
If there were anything even vaguely resembling personal responsibility in the Bush White House, Brown's head would be bouncing along Pennsylvania Avenue.
Before that could happen, of course, Bush would have to admit he took the agency he praised under Bill Clinton and turned it back into a joke -- a joke that's literally knocking them dead. -- T.H.
thenderson@lmtribune.com
Was James Lee Witt Clinton's FEMA director when several hundred, 400+ people died in Chicago's heat wave of 1995?
A ship with 600 hospital beds sat idle in the Gulf of Mexico while children were left to drown in flood waters that had become open sewers. That's just one among countless examples of official idiocy.
BECAUSE THE JACKASSES IN N.O. WOULDN'T LET THEM IN! (they went to Miss. instead - where they were welcome)
Duplicate thread. Good jokes already taken.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1483043/posts?q=1&&page=51
Who is hateful full of sh*t liar?
Uh huh, try this :
Clinton's Mythical FEMA
http://mensnewsdaily.com/blog/kouri/2005/09/clintons-mythical-fema.html
Anybody remember who was head of FEMA before Witt?
Oh, and Brown was assistant FEMA head before being promoted. That makes him the most qualified person to have held the position.
Thousands? Mississippi has a higher death rate, so far. I think that the author is the one with his head up the Democrapper!
CNN just said someone names David Pollison (sp?) has been named interim FEMA director - apparently previous head of FEMA emergency preparedness and before that head of Miami Fire and Rescue who stood out during the Andrew recovery.
Not even close to 1,000 yet.
In July 1995, a Heat wave in Chicago, Illinois led to approximately 739 heat-related deaths over a period of five days. It is now considered to be one of the worst weather-related disasters in Illinois history.
Most of the heat wave victims were the elderly poor living in the heart of the city, who either had no air conditioning or could not afford to turn it on. Many older citizens were also hesitant to open windows and doors at night for fear of crime. Elderly women were less vulnerable than elderly men. By contrast, in the heat waves of the 1930s, many residents slept outside in the parks or along the shore of Lake Michigan.
Because of the nature of the disaster, and the slow response of authorities to recognise it, no official "death toll" has been determined. However, figures show that 739 additional people died in that particular week above the usual weekly average. Further statistical analysis analyzed by Eric Klinenberg (author of Heat Wave: A Social Autopsy of Disaster in Chicago) showed that blacks were more likely to die than whites, and that Hispanics had an unusually low death rate. This has been explained by the fact that many blacks at the time lived in areas of sub-standard housing and were quite dispersed, while Hispanics at the time lived in places with higher population density. Thus demographics, rather than ethnic values, were shown to be the reason for this disparity in deaths.
******
"'Doing too much on a hot day, spending too much time in the sun or staying too long in an overheated place can cause heat-related illnesses and possibly death,' FEMA Director James Lee Witt said. 'Special care should be taken to protect the elderly, young children and those with respiratory ailments. All residents should be aware of heat disorder symptoms, know where to seek help, and be ready to give first aid treatment.'...
James Lee Witt's FEMA...
http://www.fema.gov/nwz98/heat0715.shtm
******
Project Impact intiative implemented at the end of 1997 by FEMA Director James Lee Witt. Project Impact includes a national awareness campaign that challenges communities across the United States to become disaster resistant. Several communities have been selected to demonstrate the benefits of hazard mitigation through partnership efforts with FEMA.
Project Impact Pilot Sites
Louisiana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . City of Baton Rouge
Working closely with a Congressional delegation for the impacted communities, FEMA Director James Lee Witt has decided to revise the rate ncrease that would have nearly doubled the premium costs for flood insurance in the newly designated AR Zones.
******
James Lee Witt Reflects on Oklahoma City
1995 Oklahoma City bombing received high marks (by the media), though some Republicans complained that
it was used as a pot of money doled out to bolster Clinton's political standing.
******
The News and Observer
Copyright 1998 The News and Observer (Raleigh, NC)
November 24, 1998 Tuesday
SECTION: EDITORIAL/OPINION
HEADLINE: High-water mark
James Lee Witt and his Federal Emergency Management Agency are making a timely and well-advised change by emphasizing the prevention of disaster along with the traditional role of helping people and communities recover from catastrophe.
Mitigation of risk through FEMA purchases of homes in flood-prone areas has been one of the agency's recent strategies. Witt's latest proposal, on the heels of much discussion of repetitive flood and wind damage claims in the highest-risk locations, calls for a limit - and in some cases a ban - on approval of federally subsidized flood insurance. His proposal approaches, if you will, a high-water mark in dealing with disaster.
Essentially, the FEMA director offers a two-part suggestion. First, he proposes that flood insurance be denied homeowners who have filed two or more claims that total more than the value of their homes, and who further have refused to elevate or move their homes or accept a buyout. Second, homeowners who have chosen to live in locations at high risk for flooding would be required to pay the fair market flood-insurance price instead of the subsidized rate. ...
The revised flood policy would address another cost taxpayers face when they rightfully come to the aid of victims through FEMA and other agencies. Wealthier Americans are building more homes, vacation homes or high-end rental properties in high-risk coastal areas. Princeton University research shows the much higher property values have caused disaster losses to soar without any significant increase in the number of disasters. ...
******
11/1998
FEMA’s director, James Lee Witt, announces a series of proposals to reduce
disaster losses by half in three years and to save nearly $1 billion over 10 years.
If adopted, the first proposal would prohibit the purchase of flood insurance by
homeowners who have filed two or more claims that total more than the value
of their home and who refuse to elevate their home or to accept a buyout. At
present, there is no limit to the number of claims made by property owners who
suffer repetitive damage from floods.
The second proposal would require that public buildings be insured to 80 per-
cent of their replacement value within two years. Although the 1988 Stafford
Act requires states and local communities to insure public buildings, FEMA’s
regulations require only that the amount of insurance to be purchased must be
at least up to the amount of eligible damage under the Public Assistance pro-
gram (see 11/1988, 7/1995, 1/1997, and 3/1998). If the eligible damage is less
than the building’s replacement value, and if the corresponding minimal levels
of insurance can be purchased, this can result in vastly underinsured buildings.
Existing regulations do not indicate whether the insurance must provide cover-
age for a building’s actual cash value or its replacement cost and do not address
deductibles. Consequently, the current regulations do not include any incentive
to encourage insurance on public buildings that have benefited from disaster
assistance.
10/1999
FEMA director James Lee Witt informs a congressional committee that 84 per-
cent of the agency’s flood-hazard maps are more than five years old, 66 percent
are greater than 10 years old, and 33 percent are greater than 15 years old.
Some maps, produced in the 1970s, have never been updated.
10/1999
At a hearing before the U.S. House of Representatives’ Subcommittee on Hous-
ing and Community Development Opportunity of the Committee on Banking
and Financial Services, Director Witt notes that FEMA has identified approxi-
mately 10,000 properties that have had four or more flood losses or two or
three flood losses that cumulatively exceed the value of the building. The NFIP
has provided over $800 million in claims for these properties over the past 21
years. The total cost for mitigation or buyout for these structures would be
about $450 million.
10/1999
Hurricane Floyd strikes North Carolina and causes the worst flooding in the
state’s history. Over $100 million in disaster assistance is provided to more
than 72,000 residents.
Throughout the state, nearly 150,000 structures are located in SFHAs, but only
one-third are covered by flood insurance.
"James Lee Witt, to visit by Tuesday"
Alabama Emergency Management Agency, Lee Helms:
``In a disaster there are no holidays''
Monday December 18, 2000
Alabama Tornadoes Kill 12 People
By JAY REEVES, Associated Press Writer
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) - A tornado that ripped through Tuscaloosa was seven football fields wide and killed 11 people, including a 15-month-old boy.
Authorities said the child's father also was killed, and his mother and two sisters were hospitalized in Birmingham.
A 12th person died in Geneva, more than three hours to the south. At least 75 people were injured in Saturday's storms which left a 12-mile path of destruction.
The twister, rated an F-4 on a scale that extends to F-5, was the single strongest storm in Tuscaloosa County in 50 years, said Brian Peters, a meteorologist at the weather service in Birmingham.
The winds of an F-4 tornado reach 207 mph to 260 mph, Peters said. During most of Saturday's storm, winds averaged between 175 mph and 200 mph, he added. An F-5 storm carries winds above 260 mph.
At the home of Marilyn King, Christmas decorations lay in a damp pile on the cold floor Sunday, along with shattered remains of red and gold glass balls, holiday plates and glasses.
But King still had her husband, two daughters and son-in-law. All five had cowered in a hallway as the tornado roared by 100 yards away, blasting out windows and splintering the roof.
``I'm just thankful we're not planning a funeral,'' she said.
Others were less fortunate. Gov. Don Siegelman toured the area Sunday, including the Bear Creek Mobile Home Park, where six died.
``When you see the devastation, the families, the homes and the businesses, you can feel the pain of these people,'' Siegelman said. ``It will be a long time before the effects of this tornado are mended.''
The twisters preceded a cold front that drove temperatures down more than 50 degrees in a few hours. Sunday morning, temperatures were near 20 degrees with wind chills near zero.
Storm victims had to brush away light snow as they sifted through the rubble.
``It's amazing - 70 or 75 degrees the day of the tornado and 20 the next,'' Mike Fields said as he surveyed damage to his house. A tear ran down his cheek in the biting wind.
Alabama Power Co. said it had restored power to most of the 57,000 households that lost electricity at the height of the storm. Shelters were opened in churches and a community college.
The governor said he expects the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, James Lee Witt, to visit by Tuesday.
The director of the Alabama Emergency Management Agency, Lee Helms, said crews would work through Christmas if needed, overseeing the removal of debris and assessing damage.
``In a disaster there are no holidays,'' he said.
It was the deadliest tornado to strike Alabama since the spring of 1998, when 34 people died in neighboring Jefferson and St. Clair counties. Officials said it was the worst to hit Tuscaloosa, home of the University of Alabama, since 1932 when more than 100 people were killed.
June 2000
One-fourth of the buildings within 500 feet of the nation's coastlines are threatened by erosion in the next 60 years. A study released Tuesday by the Federal Emergency Management Agency concluded that close to 87,000 homes and other buildings stand on land likely to wash away into the oceans or the Great Lakes. ``The findings are sobering,'' FEMA Director James Lee Witt said in a statement. ``If coastal development continues unabated, and if the sea levels rise as some scientists are predicting, the impact will be even worse.'' AP
-Thanks-
The Perky Katie needs a copy ASAP!! ...she was totally disgusting this morning.
I agree this guy is a Marxist Maggot (great choice of words, by the way). But do you ever wonder if we give him more power than he deserves by sitting around getting all worked about what one little sh*t bird in Nowhere, Idaho, thinks about world affairs? He probably enjoys the attention. He's probably sitting under his rock, all proud of himself for getting under our skins.
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