Failures cited in first Katrina hearing (‘Sluggish initial response’)

[sabra]

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/9339437/

Failures cited in first Katrina hearing
Chair of Senate Homeland Security panel: ‘Sluggish initial response’

WASHINGTON - Post-9/11 reforms to respond to catastrophic disasters failed their first major test in Hurricane Katrina’s wake, the Republican chairwoman of a Senate committee said Wednesday as the panel opened its inquiry of the government’s response to the storm.

Despite billions of dollars to boost disaster preparedness at all levels of government, the response to Katrina was plagued by confusion, communication failures and widespread lack of coordination, said Senate Homeland Security Committee chair Susan Collins, R-Maine.

“At this point, we would have expected a sharp, crisp response to this terrible tragedy,” Collins said. “Instead, we witnessed what appeared to be a sluggish initial response.”

...

Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the committee, said the response to Katrina “has shaken the public’s confidence in the ability of government at all levels to protect them in a crisis.”

[riverwalker]

1. where have the billions gone?

no one seems to be asking.