http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGBNFNYKBFE.htmlMIAMI (AP) - Florida disaster response officials thought their vast experience with hurricanes meant they could design an effective plan to distribute water, ice and other supplies only hours after Hurricane Wilma's winds subsided.
It didn't pan out as they intended. snip
As Wilma approached last week, Florida officials repeatedly insisted they were ready and assured they would avoid the chaos that followed Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana. Gov. Jeb Bush, a Republican who is President Bush's brother, said his state had a "unified command" that would contrast with the sluggish state and federal response in Louisiana.
After Katrina, thousands of people waited for days in New Orleans before food, water and other relief reached them. When Rita threatened the Gulf Coast weeks later, the Federal Emergency Management Agency had already stockpiled hundreds of truckloads of ice, food and water in forward positions in Texas and Louisiana.
Florida figured it could do even better as Wilma approached. snip
Bush's acknowledgment of failures comes after he has spent weeks crusading against an expanded federal role in disasters, which some politicians have proposed to avoid another Katrina debacle. Bush testified before a U.S. House on Oct. 19 in opposition to the idea, contending that states are best able to handle storm response because they are closer to the people and know their own communities.