Logistics Plans
It is not unreasonable for any county to expect to receive several large scale disasters in rapid sequence. The eight Florida hurricanes of 2004-05 were proof that any community can receive serious, and even catastrophic back-to- back events that can cause widespread damages. The States of Louisiana and Texas had to deal with Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005 with virtually no break in between each event.
In response to Hurricane Katrina, the 109th Congress enacted the Post Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act (PKEMRA) in 2006. Section 636 of the resulting Public Law 109–295 directs the Federal government to develop an efficient logistics procurement and distribution system. Section 636, Logistics states:
"The Administrator [FEMA] shall develop an efficient, transparent, and flexible logistics system for procurement and delivery of goods and services necessary for an effective and timely response to natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters and for real-time visibility of items at each point throughout the logistics system."
Every State has been required by FEMA to equally develop Logistics Plans. The State of Florida has required each county to develop corresponding Logistics Plans that complement the State of Florida Unified Logistics Plan, and specifically, those sections of containing specific county logistics standard operating guidelines.
Therefore, DSI has worked to develop a model Logistics Plan that addresses how a jurisdiction will manage the influx of commodities and goods needed immediately after a major event, and how they will be distributed within the county. This includes County Staging Areas, Points of Distribution, public shelters, and Emergency Worker Commodity Pick-up Sites.
In addition to this, our Logistics Plans describes the process for securing fuel for county vehicles and first responders in the event fuel shortages occur after an event. This is essential to ensure a rapid recovery.