Tribune; Chertoff waited 32 hours to make key disaster designation

[xray s]

Chertoff should follow Brownie's lead and resign.

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http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0509110431sep11,1,6836388.story

Blueprint for disaster
Flawed storm plans, timing errors doomed New Orleans

By Andrew Martin, Cam Simpson and Frank James, Washington Bureau. Andrew Zajac of the Tribune's Washington Bureau and staff reporter Angela Rozas in Jefferson Parish, La., contributed to this report,
Published September 11, 2005


...Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco submitted letters to President Bush on Aug. 27 and Aug. 28, well before Katrina's landfall, asking for federal help. But the head of the Homeland Security Department didn't designate the storm an "incident of national significance," a post-Sept. 11 reform that would trigger the full weight of the federal government, until at least 32 hours after the storm roared ashore Aug. 29. Based on the Hurricane Pam exercise, local authorities were prepared to deal with the aftermath of the storm for 48 to 60 hours, at which time FEMA was supposed to take over, Maestri said. But instead of arriving on Aug. 31, as expected, the federal agency didn't arrive in force until Sept. 2. By that time, New Orleans had collapsed into chaos. "My anger, my frustration, is I don't feel that the federal government, FEMA in particular, lived up to their end of the bargain," Maestri said. "We were prepared. The problem was the cavalry didn't arrive...

Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast about 6 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 29, 40 miles from New Orleans. That morning, Nagin told the "Today" show that pumping stations had stopped, "so we will have significant flooding. It's just a matter of how much."At approximately 11:30 a.m. Monday, FEMA Director Michael Brown finally sounded the alarm at the agency, proposing that 1,000 Homeland Security officials be sent to the region to support rescuers, The Associated Press reported. He estimated it would take them two days to arrive. At that time, the main stock of emergency supplies was at Camp Beauregard in Pineville, La., about four hours from New Orleans. Various media reports indicate there were 3,000 National Guard troops at the ready, and food, water and cots available for 10,000 people.

The next morning, on Tuesday, Aug. 30, the floodwall at the 17th Street Canal broke and sent water gushing into the city. By midday, widespread looting was reported. While there was little federal presence in the city, a Pentagon spokesman said there were enough National Guard troops on hand to handle the emergency. That night, roughly 32 hours after landfall, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff declared the hurricane an "incident of national significance," the first time the designation was exercised. Though it came long after Blanco's request, it triggered the full weight of the federal government into the disaster. The delay--Chertoff is empowered by law to act before a disaster strikes--is likely to become a focus of congressional investigators.