Report finds charities not prepared for a major disaster
According to a new report from the Government Accountability Office, the country's large disaster-response charities are not equipped to respond adequately to a catastrophic event like Hurricane Katrina or a major earthquake, or to address fully the need for food and shelter, the New York Times reports.
A large-scale disaster would "overwhelm" the American Red Cross and other nonprofit aid agencies and organizations that have federal responsibilities for assisting the government in feeding and sheltering victims of natural disasters, the GAO reports finds.
After their botched response to Katrina, FEMA, the Red Cross and others were widely criticized for poor coordination of relief efforts. The report faults FEMA for not fully assessing the capacities of relief groups and for not clearly documenting the roles that each should play in a disaster.
As the Institute for Southern Studies said in our recent report, Faith in the Gulf, these national charities cannot be a replacement for government action and preparedness. The GAO report finds that a major earthquake or a Katrina-like hurricane could create need on a scale that would require government or other assistance in addition to aid from groups like the Red Cross.
"Without government and other assistance, a worst-case large-scale disaster would overwhelm voluntary organizations' current sheltering and feeding capabilities," the report says. The report also calls on FEMA to better coordinate more with smaller aid groups.
The GAO report, entitled "Voluntary Organizations: FEMA Should More Fully Assess Organizations' Mass Care Capabilities and Update the Red Cross Role in Catastrophic Events," is based on a 13-month investigation that reviewed the American Red Cross, The Salvation Army, the Southern Baptist Convention, Catholic Charities USA, and United Way of America.
Some other highlights of the report:
- Many of these organizations have taken steps to expand their services and upgrade their logistical and communications systems since Hurricane Katrina three years ago, but they still face shortages in trained volunteers and financial resources.
- A nuclear terrorist attack in Washington could leave 150,000 people in need of shelter, but the Red Cross has the capacity to shelter only about 13,000 in the region. Similarly, a major earthquake in Los Angeles could necessitate shelter for as many as 300,000 people, but the Red Cross's capacity there is 84,000.
The Red Cross has been cutting staff and restructuring in response to what the GAO called "a major budget deficit." According to the NYT:
The [GAO] report is being released on the heels of news that the American Red Cross, the only relief organization with a legally mandated responsibility to help the government provide care in an emergency, is seeking $150 million in federal aid to cover the costs of assisting the victims of Hurricanes Gustav and Ike.
That is the largest amount the organization has ever sought from the government, and it underscores the report's findings that the Red Cross and three other large charities - the Salvation Army, the Southern Baptist Convention and Catholic Charities - would lack the financial and other resources needed to address a Katrina-like event.
