Emergency Logistics Issues Affecting the Response to Katrina

Abstract

Extreme events pose serious logistical challenges to emergency and aid organizations active in preparation, response, and recovery operations, because the disturbances they produce have the potential to turn normal conditions suddenly into chaos. Under these conditions, delivering critical supplies (e.g., food, water, medical supplies) becomes an extremely difficult task because of the severe damage to the physical and virtual infrastructure and the limited or nonexistent transportation capacity. In this context, the recovery process is made more difficult by the prevailing lack of knowledge about the nature and challenges of emergency supply chains. As a result, the design of reliable emergency logistics systems is hampered by lack of knowledge about how formal and informal (emergent) supply chains operate and interact; methods to analyze and coordinate the flows of priority and nonpriority goods; and, in general, scientific methods to analyze logistics systems under extreme conditions. This paper describes the key logistical issues that plagued the response to Hurricane Katrina. The logistical failures following Katrina, which in August 2005 devastated the U.S. Gulf Coast, provide an example of the need to improve the efficiency of supply chains to the site of an extreme event. The paper is based on public accounts of the event and interviews conducted during a number of field visits to the Katrina-affected area in the aftermath of the event, as part of a research project funded by the National Science Foundation.

Factors Associated with Continued Food Insecurity among Households Recovering from Hurricane Katrina

“…Following disasters, transportation lines may be interrupted, causing access issues for people with physical disabilities and mobility impairments. Further compounding access issues, supply chains may be interrupted, reducing the availability of foods in some areas following disasters [48,49]. Individuals with low social support may lack people to rely on for rides or other help to access foods.…”

The Effects of Spatial Planning, Well-Being, and Behavioural Changes During and After the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…When disaster strikes suddenly, infrastructure and transport systems are likely to be affected. Moreover, the lack of access, coordination, and standardisation of emergency-medical or infrastructure resources can impair decision-making and execution capabilities (Disaster Research Center, 1995;NRC, 1999;Holguín-Veras et al, 2007).…”

Emergency logistics for disaster management under spatio-temporal demand correlation: The earthquakes case

“…One such action is the proper anticipation of spatial demand for emergency supplies. This anticipation leads to the pre-positioning of inventory at certain sites to reduce the access time and logistical cost of satisfying the urgent needs [20]. Another action is the allocation of transportation capacity to potentially affected regions.…”

“…From the logistics perspective, the main difficulty after an earthquake occurrence lies in the uncertainty posed by the disaster. The earthquake triggers a sudden increase in the demand for specialized supplies and personnel (usually non-existent during normal times) reaching unexpected high levels, often forcing decision makers to improvise plans with lack of information and preparation [20], leading to great losses in terms of human lives and economic resources.…”