Federal response coordinators and hurricane states | 04.12.2006 | 10:35:32 | Views: 4780 | ID: April 12 '06: Officials in the Department of Homeland Security are revamping efforts and logistics "to deliver fast aid and supplies to victims during the looming hurricane season," the Associated Press reported this week. So far, 13 states will receive federal disaster responders in a larger effort to reorganize the response from the government following a major disaster. "Additionally," the AP reported, "(The Federal Emergency Management Agency) FEMA will appoint top-level disaster officials to oversee the federal response in five regions where hurricanes are most likely to strike this year." FEMA also has posted on its website tips to help people register for federal aid while addressing some "myths" about disaster assistance. Those efforts also include adding new states to the list of areas where federal relief will be focused. And the National Emergency Management Association said although it supports the addition of federal disaster coordinators in "high-risk areas," it does not want "another level of bureaucracy," the AP continued. However, much of the changes DHS is considering, the AP reported, are ways to improve disaster response, communication and coordination - something Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff "promised that 11 top federal emergency response priorities will be ready by June 1. Those priorities include creating new systems to track supplies, aid victims and deliver quick information to all levels of government." "The 11 reforms," the AP found, "are among 125 recommendations White House homeland security adviser Frances Fragos Townsend issued last month as part of a federal "lessons learned" review of Katrina."
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