Is D.C. Prepared for a Tsunami?
After 9/11, our disaster preparedness is better -- but far from ideal. By Marc Ambinder Friday, March 11, 2011 | 11:50 a.m. The administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Craig Fugate, was woken up early Friday morning by a watch officer from FEMA's National Response Coordination Center and given news about the massive earthquake and tsunami off the coast of Japan. From FEMA's perspective, the action checklist here is relatively routine: provide support to the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration's tsunami warning groups, activate the Mount Weather Emergency Operations Center in Virginia, and provide warnings to states and localities over the National Warning System, a 24/7 secure open line to emergency management centers across the country. Fugate's aides also have a checklist of concerns for coastal areas: What's the likelihood that drinking water will be contaminated? Should FEMA's pre-positioned resources be deployed? Should ...