NOD releases findings of Katrina rapid assessment teams

Citation

(2006), "NOD releases findings of Katrina rapid assessment teams", Disaster Prevention and Management, Vol. 15 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/dpm.2006.07315cab.010

NOD releases findings of Katrina rapid assessment teams

On October 5, the National Organization on Disability (NOD) released the findings of its Hurricane Katrina rapid assessment teams and announced the formation of an independent task force to address the system-wide challenges brought to light after Katrina. Four assessment teams were deployed in response to the devastation and loss of life caused by Hurricane Katrina to investigate the status of response and recovery for the special needs populations, which included people with disabilities, the elderly, and medically managed individuals. Their goal was to identify and review systemic points of weakness and opportunities for immediate actionable corrections to alleviate suffering during emergency response operations.

The teams gathered data on gaps in response efforts and on long-term recovery needs. They also collected information to support or disprove “stories” that emerged from the disability and senior communities. Their findings and recommendations for action are available in the full 16-page report, which can be accessed at: www.nod.org/Resources/PDFs/katrina_snake_report.pdf. Additional information about NOD and its Emergency Preparedness Initiative can be found at: www.nod.org/emergency.

These articles have been extracted from the Natural Hazards Observer, July and September 2005 issues.