Disaster Management in the City of Lufkin

Introduction

Emergency management systems are essential because disasters are not always predictable. Emergency management is the managerial function responsible for dealing with preparedness, response, mitigation, and recovery to reduce the harmful effects of calamities. For this paper, an emergency is defined as any event that disrupts normal operations, causes injuries, death, and environmental damage, and requires immediate measures to prevent it from elevating to a more disastrous level. US law requires all local governments to establish emergency management departments, and up-to-date comprehensive emergency management plan (CEMP), or to be part of joint emergency management organizations (MRSC, 2019). The emergency preparedness, response, and management plans should be accessible to all, including those with disabilities. In this literature review, the significance of an emergency management department in the City of Lufkin and other urban areas has been discussed.

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The integration of government, community, and individual level emergency management plans is essential for controlling and responding to risks that might have catastrophic effects. Such hazards include floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, tsunamis, winter storms, wildfires, civil disturbances, public transportation, communication, or electricity failures, and radiological accidents. The effective management of the problems is possible through accountability, participation, transparency, and predictability (Kapucu, 2012).

Problem Statement

Although disaster management is a widely studied area in modern literature, little research has been conducted on the significance of a comprehensive emergency management program in urban areas. As mandated by the federal law of the U.S., cities and local government in the nation have emergency response teams, and strategies to mitigate subsequent disasters. An emergency management department is essential creating awareness, and responding to harmful conditions, by uniting the relevant agencies to function as a single unit, and ensuring the provision of the required resources. Some towns in the U.S. are affected by delayed emergency response, thereby limiting the reliability of 911 calls. For instance, in her News article, Abbate (2019) reported that in some areas, patients are forced to get help from nearby communities due to unavailability of ambulances. Arguably, an effective emergency management system would solve this problem by ensuring more resources are provided to meet the demand.

Study Design

Different research articles, journals, and information from websites were analyzed to create this review article. Recent studies were used to match current trends in emergency management. This review offers precise information on the relevance of emergency management departments in American cities such as Lufkin; however, additional research may be instrumental in reinforcing the study outcomes.

Urban Emergency Management

In urban areas, emergency management often requires multi-sector collaborative efforts. The key stakeholders involved are public organizations from different levels of the government, nonprofits, private sector organizations, individuals, and community organizations (Kapucu, 2012). Citizens are not limited to individual efforts in the management of emergencies; for example, in the aftermath of catastrophes, people give not only cash donations but also donate their blood. On the other side, communities work to increase their resiliency to the risks they are likely to experience because total prevention might not be possible (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2019). Also, communities can create programs outreach programs to educate business owners, property managers, and residents on how they can minimize the harmful effects of emergencies. According to Kapucu (2012), such collaborative efforts give legitimacy to the emergency management process.

Collaborative emergency management in different regions is guided by a plan, which fosters the participation of various agencies. For instance, CEMP specifies the roles and responsibilities of respondent agencies in case a disastrous event occurs (Kapucu, 2012). The instrumentalities come together under a single umbrella to create a unified action against emergencies. Arguably, such relationships lead to a more coordinated, stronger approach to emergency preparedness and response.

Collaborative emergency management is not only essential in controlling natural calamities but also medical emergencies. Partnerships between public environmental health and emergency response programs prevent disasters that may cause long-lasting repercussions on environmental health services of affected areas (Gamboa-Maldonado, Marshak, Sinclair, Montgomery, & Dyjack, 2012). The agencies are responsible for protecting people against infectious diseases, protecting the food supply, and ensuring healthful living conditions (Gamboa-Maldonado et al., 2012). The collective efforts are often put help communities that are more vulnerable to environmental risks. Therefore, the plan involves nongovernmental organizations, the private sector, and individuals.

Advances in Multi-Agency Emergency Management

Practical emergency response efforts rely on coherent coordination, sufficient flow of accurate information from multiple sources, and timeliness, to minimize losses in cases of threatening situations. To achieve this outcome, different agencies have incorporated the use of technology to facilitate the identification of hazardous conditions and information sharing (Janssen, Lee, Bharosa, & Cresswell, 2009). The information delivered too late might fail to prevent damages, and if given too early, it may be neglected (Janssen et al., 2009). Therefore, every local government requires a reliable communication system that provides relevant information at the right time, during the four phases of disaster management - mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. In Lufkin, the Everbridge Aware system was developed to enable disaster management units to provide emergency alerts to the citizens. Hence, the agencies and organizations responsible for disaster management can easily reach the residents of the city anytime a risk is likely to occur.

Importance of Emergency Managers

Emergency managers are instrumental in ensuring safety and increasing chances of survival and conserving property in times of disaster. In his study, Williams (2010) compared them to business managers because they both have a role of identifying unexpected disturbances and offering corrective actions. For instance, firefighters strive to put out a fire to save property and also protect, remove, and provide care for endangered victims. Consequently, emergency managers are responsible for containing the immediate risk if possible, like in the case of firefighters. However, even if the problem cannot be controlled, emergency managers minimize its harmful effects and educate members of the community on how to be ready to respond to similar calamities in the future.

Discussion

Both natural and human-caused disasters have affected the U.S. for centuries. Some examples include the Chicago Fire of 1871, the Flood of 1927, Hurricane Camille in 1969, terrorist attacks in 2001, and Hurricane Katrina in 2005 (Knox, 2013). These catastrophic events had dire outcomes on the lives of American citizens. For instance, Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and Katrina destroyed of lives, property, and land (Knox, 2013). These events prompted emergency managers, and agencies at all levels of government to review, evaluate, and implement efficient emergency management systems. The managers are responsible for ensuring that a community is prepared to deal with disasters once they arise (Somers & Svara, 2009). The systems were implemented to increase the preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery efforts in times of subsequent disasters. Since it is hard to predict or to prevent the occurrence of calamities, every city in America should have a well-equipped and functional emergency management department.

U.S. law requires each city to have its emergency management department or to participate in joint emergency management organizations. More often than not, urban centers opt to participate in collaborative emergency management programs (Kapucu, 2012). The parties involved in the collaboration include local emergency management committees, fire departments, the police, American Red Cross, telecommunication companies, neighboring businesses, and electric utilities. The collective efforts of these agencies ensure fast and efficient response to emergencies (Kapucu, 2012). Through adequate, timely, and reliable communication, collaborative emergency management helps members of the community to be prepared for the risks they are likely to experience and to respond to them quickly.

This literature review emphasizes the significance of having emergency management departments that embrace collaborative efforts in urban areas. A study conducted by Lutz and Lindell (2008) revealed that in times of emergencies, uncertainty about ongoing situation and conflicts over who should respond were prevalent. Lutz and Lindell (2008) suggested that due to these uncertainties, standardized incident management systems were developed to respond to emergencies. Similarly, emergency management organizations were set up in the U.S. for mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery from disasters. Since no region is entirely safe from natural calamities and other emergencies, it is utmost importance that every city, county, and state - including the City of Lufkin - should have a functional emergency management department.

If the emergency department of the City of Lufkin integrates the Everbridge Aware system with a collaborative framework, it will be easy for the residents to communicate to the relevant agencies to notify them of emergencies, and vice versa. Similarly, the agencies will be able to respond to emergencies quickly, thereby increasing their reliability. Moreover, the collaborative plan will enable agencies to offer quick solutions to incidents that are predictable, thus minimizing wastage of property (Lutz & Lindell, 2008).

Conclusion

This literature review contains an analysis of the significance of emergency management departments in the City of Lufkin, among other urban areas. Combined efforts by the government, community, and individual level emergency management plans are necessary for controlling and responding to risks that might have catastrophic effects. In most urban centers, such multi-sector collaborative programs involving nonprofits, private sectors, and community organizations are integral parts of emergency management. Collaborative emergency management in different regions is guided by a plan - such as CEMP - which fosters the participation and defines the roles of various involved agencies. Collaborative emergency management is not only essential in controlling natural calamities but also medical emergencies, to safeguard environmental health services. The use of technology is a growing trend in emergency management; it facilitates coherent coordination and timely flow of sufficient, accurate information for increased reliability in responding to disasters. Emergency managers help to safeguard lives, property, and to control the harmful effects of disasters.

The U.S. has been a victim of both natural and human-caused disasters have for centuries; these problems prompted the need for incidence management problems. Since no regions are entirely safe from such calamities, cities in America should have well-equipped and functional emergency management departments. Programs such as Lufkin's Everbridge Aware system can improve collaborative efforts...