Frustrated FEMA Director Says Victims Need To Take Responsibility

TALLAHASSEE, FL -- After days of stoically relaying a litany of statistics on Hurricane Michael's impact in the Panhandle, Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Brock Long abandoned all objectivity at this morning's press conference.

"You see enough of this in your career and you get ticked off about it," said Long, explaining his loss of composure.

Throughout the year, he said FEMA constantly emphasizes the need for preparation but the message continually falls on deaf ears, he said.

"The bottom line is we try to push out and promote pre-disaster mitigation," he said. "That's the stuff that never gets picked up about FEMA. It's like screaming in the wind. Nobody hears it."

Nevertheless, when a disaster strikes, the brunt of the criticism falls on FEMA's shoulders.

"That's the frustrating part for the people who bust their rears inside this agency," he said. "They never get a fair shake. People don't pay any attention to what we do or say when it's a blue sky day and nothing's happening. People only focus the camera on us after something's happened."

One of the problems is what Long called "hurricane amnesia."

"Ten years go by and we're going to forget what happened in Mexico Beach," he said.

Long said hurricanes are classified by winds "but storm surge causes the most loss of life and the most amount of destruction, and I hope the country won't forget it. It's not the wind; it's the ocean and crashing waves. Unfortunately in this country, we seem to not learn that lesson."

In 1969, 271 people lost their lives in Hurricane Camille due to storm surge.

"The ocean rose and basically swallowed them up," he said.

Then, once again, during Hurricane Katrina in 2005, as everyone was focused on New Orleans, 270 people lost their lives when the ocean rose 29 feet and they were literally washed out to sea.

"The reason you don't hear about those 270 people is they're not around to give an interview after the fact," he said. "This is something I've been passionate about. It's why we cry for preparedness. We want people to understand how these storms attack communities."

Yet, whenever mandatory evacuations are declared, there are those who ignore them, he said.

The countless flattened buildings in the Panhandle aren't due to winds, "the damage in Mexico Beach is because the ocean rose 14 feet and literally shoved buildings out of the way," Long said. "It's one of the most powerful storms this country has seen since 1861."

While he said he's trying to be optimistic, he believes the death toll will rise substantially once rescue workers are able to get into Mexico Beach and other impacted areas and look beneath the rubble.

"Unfortunately, I think you're going to see that number rise, particularly in Mexico Beach," Long said. "Anybody who didn't heed the warning to evacuate, particularly on the coast. Very few people live to tell what it's like to experience storm surge."

He said the one bright spot on the horizon is Congress' approval last week of the Disaster Recovery Reform Act, which Long called "transformative."

"It makes pre-disaster mitigation a priority," he said. "I've been crying for it to be a priority for years. Now Congress did it and I congratulate them."

The bill mandates that a percentage of disaster dollars be spent up front each year for pre-disaster mitigation -- to shore up infrastructure before the disaster hits.

"That bill is huge for us; it's huge for this country," he said. "It could potentially put billions of dollars into play every year."

But, in the scheme of things, FEMA can only do so much, he said.

"We're just one part of the formula that's needed to stop this madness." he said. "We're a temporary patch. FEMA's assistance is capped. It's not designed to make anybody whole; to rescue people who have lost everything they've ever worked for in their lives.

"So you guys help me," he said, addressing the media. "How do we stop the vicious cycle of damage and destruction, damage and destruction, time and time and time again?"

He believes disaster insurance is part of the solution.

"We have to educate people on insurance. Insurance is the first line of defense, and it's not just flood insurance. It's fire and earthquake. I'm not going to tell people where to live but if they choose to live in certain areas, there's a risk that comes with it. They need to be properly insured."

Unfortunately, many people can't afford the extra $500 or so needed to insure their homes for disasters. Others pay off their mortgage and then let their insurance lapse because it's no longer a requirement of their mortgage company.

"Those who are insured are going to recover a lot faster than those who aren't," Long said.

He said tougher state and local building codes are also essential to saving lives and property.

"It's not a bigger FEMA that's going to solve problems; it's meaningful building codes at the local and state levels across this country," he said. "I keep going over in my mind how we build a culture of preparedness in this country. If you want to live in these areas, you've got to mitigate your homes. When you go back to rebuild, you have to do it in a resilient fashion. You don't rebuild to the same standards."

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Video via FEMA