Army Support During the Hurricane Katrina Disaster

In preparation for and reaction to the hurricane, the United States
Northern Command established Joint Task Force Katrina at Camp Shelby,
Mississippi, to act as the Active component’s on-scene commander. Some
22,000 Active-Duty personnel eventually assisted with relief-and-recovery
operations in Mississippi and Louisiana. At the same time, all 50 states, the
District of Columbia, and 3 territories sent approximately 50,000 National
Guard personnel to deal with the storm’s aftermath. These men and women
were instrumental in the rescue-and-relief mission, often using their own
initiative and resources in the chaotic aftermath of the storm.
Because the media coverage of this great national disaster tended
toward the sensational more than the analytical, many important stories
remain to be told in a dispassionate manner. One such story is the response
by US Army personnel, both the Active and Reserve components, within
the broader governmental effort to mitigate the horrific effects of the storm.
James Wombwell’s study offers just such a dispassionate analysis of the
Army’s response to the natural disaster by providing a detailed account
of the operations in Louisiana and Mississippi. Much good work was
done by the Army team, but Wombwell shows that there is still room for
improvement.
Sadly, we have not seen the end of natural disasters in the United
States, ensuring that the US Army once more will be called upon to
provide assistance in their aftermath. The insights gained from the
Army’s experience following Hurricane Katrina, as delineated in James
Wombwell’s study, will make that future response even more focused and
efficient.