Disaster Medical Deployed For Hurricane Katrina (real time loop)

Washington Disaster Medical Assistance Team Deployed To Gulf States For Hurricane Katrina

FEMA Disaster Medical Assistance Teams, like this one shown, will be assisting with treating patients coming to area hospitals following Hurricane Katrina. Jocelyn Augustino/FEMA News Photo

Hurricane, Tropical Storm Real Time Loop This loop intended for informational purposes only! For Emergency situations, please refer to your local Emergency Management Office

Release Date: August 30, 2005, Release number: R10-05-083

SEATTLE, Wash. -- Medical specialists from Washington-1 Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT) have been deployed to Gulf Coast states to assist in the response effort to Hurricane Katrina. Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) deployed Washington-1 DMAT to be ready to assist communities in the area with emergency medical needs following Hurricane Katrina.

“FEMA is coordinating the mobilization of all available federal resources to help residents who may be in the path of this dangerous storm. The DMAT teams play a critical role in the medical response to a disaster by assisting communities whose medical resources may be overwhelmed,” said Michael D. Brown, Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Emergency Preparedness and Response.

The WA-1 DMAT joins similar teams from Massachusetts, New Mexico, Ohio, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and Florida, and according to WA-1 DMAT Team Commander Bill Engler, the teams will deploy as needed into Hurricane Katrina-affected areas. “We are prepared to help the residents of affected states with their medical needs, and we have some of the finest emergency medical personnel from Washington State responding to this disaster,” said Bill Engler. “Our team members are experienced in these situations and ready to mobilize when the call comes.”

These teams are part of the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS), which is one of the resources brought to FEMA since the creation of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Washington-1 is one of the leading DMATs in the U.S., developed in the late ‘80’s. The unit is designed to be self-sufficient for 72 hours with supplies including food and medicine. FEMA DMATs have responded to large-scale disasters including the World Trade Center attack on September 11, 2001. NDMS Teams were also deployed in 2004 to support the G8 Summit in Georgia, the National Democratic Convention in Boston and the Republican National Convention in New York.

FEMA prepares the nation for all hazards and manages federal response and recovery efforts following any national incident. FEMA also initiates mitigation activities, trains first responders, works with state and local emergency managers, and manages the National Flood Insurance Program and the U.S. Fire Administration. FEMA became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on March 1, 2003.

Source: FEMA more at President Bush or Hurricane Katrina and Katrina or FEMA and hurricane