Chapter Appendix B - What Went Right
Section Department of the Interior
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Department of the Interior
The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) of the Department of the Interior (DOI) focused their efforts on assisting tribes in the Gulf region to address their public safety, emergency access, and emergency services needs.54 They maintained communications before hurricane landfall and coordinated directly with Tribal governments, such as the Mississippi Choctaw Tribal government.55 BIA waited until Tribal governments made requests before sending assistance, but started preparing and moving assets ahead of time, so that when the requests for assistance did come, they were already responding.
BIA had responded to seven hurricanes previously and knew exactly what to do when the time and requests came. The Bureau arranged for fresh water to be delivered from other States, replaced spoiled food, cleared debris from roadways, brought in necessary supplies, ensured continuity of education for children attending BIA-funded schools, and improved public safety infrastructure by assigning Bureau law enforcement personnel to the area. The Bureau also correctly assumed that those Tribes near the affected regions would take in other members that were victims of the hurricane and flood, and worked to provide financial and other assistance, helping the Tribes take care of each other.56
Federal land-managing agencies, such as the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), as well as their state counterparts sent hundreds of employees to help restore public health and safety in the devastated region. They also deployed to the Mississippi-Louisiana border to clear roadways and power lines of damaged and fallen trees that had cut off those in the coastal communities, so that first responders could gain access to the victims and help restore power. BLM personnel also skillfully applied their experience with planning, logistical support and tracking (gained from years of managing wildland fires) to the situation in the Gulf region.57
Coordinating with FEMA, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and their sister organizations within the DOI, the Bureau of Reclamation mobilized equipment and staff in response to the hurricane and flood. Recognizing the need to purify drinking water, the Bureau of Reclamation sent an expeditionary water purification unit to Mississippi, purifying both contaminated and salt water to levels that not only met, but exceeded, EPA drinking water standards. The unit produced 100,000 to 200,000 gallons of purified water per day. The Bureau also deployed employees to assist with debris removal and install temporary roofing. They had equipment and trained personnel who were well acquainted with the rigors and requirements of water purification and other missions in contaminated and disaster-driven conditions.58
Scientists from the Geological Survey worked with the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality to monitor water quality in the state following the hurricane and flood. Using a mobile laboratory, they collected and analyzed water samples from 22 sites in and around Lake Pontchartrain, a major recreational area and fishery, for three weeks to determine levels of contamination, and whether this contamination extended into the Mississippi Sound.59 They applied sound scientific research practices and attention to detail to the problem of contaminated water in the region.
Volunteers from the DOI Office of Surface Mining (OSM) deployed to Texas and worked at 13 different debris-disposal sites, dealing with more than one million cubic yards of debris. Additionally, OSM personnel conducted safety training, handled equipment inventory, purchasing and other administrative requirements. They applied their vast experience with clearing large amounts of debris to the situation, moving debris out as efficiently and effectively after the disaster as they do for surface mining.60
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