Terrorism Disaster Response: Local, State and Federal Roles, Stafford Act, Recovery Capacity and Disaster Communication

Terrorism Disaster Response: Local, State and Federal Roles, the Stafford Act, Recovery Capacity and Disaster Communication

Analyze, discuss and apply the following:

• The relationship between the local, state and federal responses to a terrorism disaster, including the presidential disaster declaration system and the Stafford Act.
• Major concerns regarding a terrorism response.
• Community capacity building for recovery from a terrorism response.
• The purpose of disaster communication and its assumptions as related to a terrorism response.
• The elements of an effective disaster communication program.

Original example for study purposes (about 750 words). Apply each section to a scenario or case your course uses, such as the Boston Marathon bombing or Oklahoma City.

Local, State and Federal Responses and the Stafford Act

Disaster response in the United States is locally executed, state managed and federally supported. When a bomb or other attack occurs, local police, fire, emergency medical services and hospitals respond first, usually under the Incident Command System of the National Incident Management System (NIMS). When local resources are overwhelmed, the local government requests help from the state, and the governor can activate the state emergency operations center, the National Guard and mutual aid through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact. If the event exceeds state and local capability, the governor requests a presidential declaration under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The president may declare an emergency, which provides limited assistance to save lives and protect property, or a major disaster, which unlocks broader programs such as Individual Assistance for survivors, Public Assistance for debris removal and repair of public facilities and Hazard Mitigation grants (Haddow et al., 2021).

Terrorism adds a law enforcement layer. Under the National Response Framework, the Federal Bureau of Investigation leads the criminal investigation and intelligence effort, while FEMA coordinates federal support for the consequences, such as mass care and recovery (U.S. Department of Homeland Security [DHS], 2019). Unified command allows local incident commanders, state agencies and federal partners to coordinate without losing their own authorities. After the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing and the September 11, 2001, attacks, presidential declarations brought federal resources into communities while the FBI investigated the crimes.

Major Concerns in a Terrorism Response

• Responder safety: secondary devices targeting responders, structural collapse and unknown chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear (CBRN) agents.
• Crime scene and evidence: rescue must be balanced with preserving evidence for prosecution.
• Mass casualties and surge: hospitals may face sudden surges and unusual injuries, and self-referred patients can overwhelm the nearest facilities.
• Coordination: many agencies with different cultures and communication systems must work together, and radio interoperability failures have hampered past responses.
• Public fear and misinformation: terrorism is designed to create fear, so rumors on social media can spread faster than official information.
• Continuing threat: perpetrators may still be at large, requiring shelter-in-place orders or lockdowns, as during the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing manhunt.
• Psychological impact: survivors, families and responders may experience long-term trauma.

Community Capacity Building for Recovery

Recovery from terrorism involves rebuilding physical infrastructure, the economy and the community’s sense of safety. FEMA’s whole community approach and the National Disaster Recovery Framework emphasize that recovery is most successful when local governments, businesses, faith-based and nonprofit organizations and residents plan and lead it together (FEMA, 2016). Capacity-building strategies include pre-disaster recovery planning, designating a local recovery coordinator, training community leaders, strengthening volunteer and donation management, establishing long-term behavioral health services and creating victim assistance and family assistance centers. Memorial and remembrance activities, such as the Oklahoma City National Memorial, can also help communities heal and rebuild a shared identity.

Purpose and Assumptions of Disaster Communication

The purpose of disaster communication is to provide timely, accurate information to the public, partners and the media before, during and after an event so that people can protect themselves, follow instructions and recover. In a terrorism response, communication must also counter fear and misinformation without compromising the investigation. Haddow et al. (2021) describe several assumptions that underpin effective disaster communication:

• Customer focus: understand what information the public and partners need and deliver it in usable forms.
• Leadership commitment: leaders must support open, regular communication and serve as credible spokespersons.
• Inclusion of communication in planning and operations: communication specialists should be part of planning and the command structure, not an afterthought.
• Situational awareness: communicators need timely, accurate information about the event to share.
• Media partnership: the media is a partner for reaching the public quickly, not an adversary.

Elements of an Effective Disaster Communication Program

• A written communication plan with pre-scripted messages for likely scenarios, including CBRN events.
• A joint information center and joint information system so that agencies speak with one voice.
• Trained, trusted spokespersons and regular briefings on a predictable schedule.
• Multiple channels, including wireless emergency alerts, social media, radio, television and community networks, with materials in multiple languages and accessible formats.
• Social media monitoring to detect and correct rumors quickly.
• Coordination with law enforcement to protect sensitive information.
• Two-way communication through hotlines and community meetings, plus after-action evaluation.

Applied to a terrorism event, these elements help responders save lives, maintain public trust and lay the foundation for a community-led recovery.

References

Federal Emergency Management Agency. (2016). National disaster recovery framework (2nd ed.). U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Haddow, G. D., Bullock, J. A., & Coppola, D. P. (2021). Introduction to emergency management (7th ed.). Butterworth-Heinemann.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security. (2019). National response framework (4th ed.).

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