First a Storm, Then a Fiasco : U.S. disaster agency’s continuing ineptitude points to need for an overhaul

After Hurricane Andrew demolished South Florida, President Bush declared the area eligible for federal disaster aid. The Federal Emergency Management Agency was supposed to coordinate relief for the thousands of homeless, hungry and often confused victims.

But FEMA failed miserably in its mission. Relief efforts were in such disarray that Bush had to name Transportation Secretary Andrew H. Card Jr. to head a task force to coordinate operations. In the first days after Andrew, food and shelter were unavailable. Then victims had to--and still do--stand in line or make appointments to apply for financial aid. Now relief checks are slow in arriving.

Uninsured hurricane victims find dealing with FEMA a tiresome, frustrating, bureaucratic snarl of wait-and-see. It was no different for the victims of the Los Angeles riots earlier this year and victims of the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989.

FEMA repeatedly disappoints. The latest fiasco renews accusations of incompetence, mismanagement, inadequate training, bureaucratic insensitivity and discrimination against low-income disaster victims.

A recent House Appropriations Committee report criticized FEMA as a “dumping ground” for political appointees with no disaster relief experience. Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.), chairman of a Senate committee that oversees FEMA, has called for an overhaul of federal disaster policy, which at the very least should be seriously considered. Los Angeles County, mindful of FEMA’s problems, is now advising people to stock enough food and water for a week instead of 72 hours in the event of a major quake.

President Jimmy Carter created FEMA to consolidate federal civil defense and disaster programs. But until recently the agency focused its efforts and money on civil defense of the country in case of nuclear war. Programs for general disaster relief and preparation for earthquakes and hurricanes got far less attention--and money.

The nation’s dysfunctional disaster policy needs reform. Can FEMA stand up to the shock of another disaster, natural or man-made? We shouldn’t have to wait to find out.