Exercise months before Katrina showed gaps in response

A comprehensive, governmentwide exercise conducted five months before Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast revealed gaps in the nation's ability to respond to catastrophic incidents, according to a new report.

The Top Officials 3, or TOPOFF 3, exercise in early April showed flaws in coordination between the federal government, state and local governments and the private sector, according to a review released this week by the Homeland Security Department's inspector general.

Specifically, the review revealed a lack of understanding at all levels about the National Response Plan and National Incident Management System, which were developed to coordinate the government's response to terrorist attacks or natural disasters. NRP and NIMS were used for the first time in a real catastrophe during Hurricane Katrina.

To test disaster preparedness, TOPOFF 3 used a mock biological attack in New Jersey and a simulated chemical attack and high-yield explosion in Connecticut. The principal objectives of the test were met, the IG said.

The test was the most ambitious of the TOPOFF exercises to date, and DHS' Office of State and Local Government Coordination and Preparedness successfully partnered with 27 federal agencies, 30 state agencies, 44 local agencies and 156 private sector organizations during a yearlong process of planning and staging exercise events.

"The exercise emphasized, however, a difficulty in establishing a coordinated federal and state response," the IG found. "Top officials and their advisers must be more aware of the need to coordinate support efforts across all levels of government."

"Upon our review and understanding of the NRP, guidance and procedures to define how each function interrelates within the NRP appear absent," the IG stated. "Developing effective operating procedures and defined roles is essential to establishing accountability, preventing duplication of efforts, satisfying appropriate NRP and NIMS standards, strengthening operations, and providing the foundation for a cohesive national preparedness, response and recovery strategy.

"Without standards, specific duties and functions will remain unclear and the relationship between specific roles and responsibilities will remain undefined," the report stated.

The review also identified problems with federal and state efforts to coordinate resources, as well as a lack of a common operating picture and timely information sharing between governments and agencies.

Some of the same problems the IG identified for TOPOFF 3 have cropped up in congressional reviews of the nation's late August and early September response to Hurricane Katrina.

The IG offered 14 recommendations to improve the government's disaster response capabilities and make future TOPOFF exercises more realistic. DHS did not disagree with the IG's findings and suggestions.