Hurricane Katrina


The modern comforts of America made the devastation of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans and the surrounding area inconceivable. While the media images were compelling, they seemed so distant from my own world. So I had some heavy thinking to do when I received an e-mail from Secretary of Commerce Carlos Guiterrez requesting that Department of Commerce (DOC) employees consider assisting with disaster relief efforts by a voluntary transfer to the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA.)

In a second e-mail on September 6, 2005, the FEMA coordinator at the Department of Commerce (DOC) indicated that transferees would train for a few days in Emmitsburg, Maryland, and then be notified by FEMA a few days afterwards about a 30-day deployment. The note included links for more information:

• DOC's Hurricane Katrina Volunteer Program
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Information for Volunteers
• Information on the FEMA Orlando Facility Florida Long Term Recovery Office (FLTRO) (Note the packing list!)

On Thursday, September 8, I sent a simple note expressing my interest, confirming that I had the support of my supervisor, and noting my dates of availability. I felt good about sending off that note and then turned my attention that weekend to the 2005 Atlantic Stampede Rodeo. I was not only competing (for the first time) but also head of security since the original security boss had already been deployed to Louisiana.

Deployment


The very next Monday, September 12, I was flush from the excitement (and worn with the fatigue) from the weekend-long rodeo and parties. That afternoon, I received a call from FEMA saying that I was accepted for transfer and that I was to fly out to Orlando (not Emmitsburg!) in three days for training beginning that Friday, September 15!

Hurriedly, I started the admin wheels in motion. That’s when I discovered that (1) most of the information on the DOC website about the FEMA transfer was wrong, (2) my government travel credit card would not be processed by the time of my departure, and (3) the DOC NTIA Office of Chief Counsel had a real problem with my transfer.

I was able to patch together some more accurate information (this was to become a valued skill with FEMA, as I later learned) and my NTIA administration guardian angel Mary Lipscomb overnighted my card the next week (but not before I shelled out over $1,300 through my own bank card.)

The reaction by the NTIA legal department was distressing and dogged me throughout my 30-day deployment. Even though the transfer program was Department-wide, our agency’s legal staff insisted on developing its own memorandum of understanding (MOU) directly with FEMA and Department of Homeland Security. However, since they could find no one to sign the MOU at FEMA/DHS, I found myself sitting at home on the morning of Thursday, September 15, a few hours before my flight was to leave, waiting for NTIA administration to fax me the travel orders approved by the legal department so that I could pick up my airline tickets!