Aftermath of Katrina free essay sample

There is still a difference between something and nothing, but it is purely geometrical and there is nothing behind the geometry. † Martin Garden† People are powerless under natural forces such as Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans that occurred on August 29, 2005. This catastrophe has brought death, deprived people of their homes and work-places. ‘Katrina has left a disaster zone of 90,000 square miles in its wake almost the size of the UK. Thousands have been killed or injured and more than half a million people have been displaced in a humanitarian crisis of a scale not seen in the US since the great depression. The cost of the damage may top $100 billion’ (Pickrell 2005). Can New Orleans Hospital return to a safe workplace after Hurricane Katrina? After several months of Hurricane Katrina, people began returning home. Rebuilding started from people’s homes because people were considered to be the main workforce. Then, rebuilding of offices and different institutions was provided. We will write a custom essay sample on Aftermath of Katrina or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page In general, ‘in the aftermath of massive displacement, restoring economic viability means developing communication mechanisms to permit shredded networks of neighbors to reconnect, implementing training programs to make sure that the new jobs of the reconstructed economy can be filled by those who wish to return to the city, and providing strategies for coordinated provision of appropriately located transitional housing’ (Birch and Wachter 2006, p. 158). On the example of one of the largest New Orleans Hospitals, we can observe that at the same time they provided measures to stabilize the situation for returning home. An Industrial Hygienist was sent to New Orleans for monitoring workplace. This person supervised a team that composed of the hospital’s current Safety Supervisor (programs and training), the Environmental Manager (physical plant, wastes and regulatory issues), and two technicians (versed in IH and environmental sample collection and testing), and participated in a plan to re-establish basic medical needs for the workers involved in the recovery effort. An Industrial Hygienist provided the report with the list of the initial medicaments to the authorities. Besides, this person was responsible for providing the first aid to team members, in other words, observing their health and providing vaccination from the diseases that could occur in such situation: hepatitis A, cholera, tuberculosis, and typhoid fever. An Industrial Hygienist had to organize work of a team according to the following steps: to analyze the situation within the offices and provide a sustainable plan for removal of all obstacles that prevent the working process. The storm debris had to be packed into special bags while water entering had to be prevented by special sandbags around the territory of the building. Each member of a team was to be responsible for different sectors of work and reports on the basis of gathered information concerning dirtying a place and necessary equipments and means for its removal. For example, the Environmental Manager was to be responsible for analysis of dirtying a place level and composing a list of medications needed for the first medical help and a list of medical equipment that was damaged and had to be renew; technicians – for composing testing equipment. Having come back to the work-place, a team found out that their offices, that is, the surgical suites and clinical laboratory, were full of a considerable amount of trash and debris scattered about with ample evidence of the public’s intrusion to the area after the event. There were muddy footprints and open cabinets, along with testing supplies and equipment strewn about your team’s office area. Emergency room operations and cafeteria were situated on the first floor and there the situation required special attention because water level was very high. When speaking about the first steps for returning the working process into the usual style, it is important to stress that the initial cleaning is considered to be necessary one especially in the hospitals, places of the first medical help. The Incident Commander, a person in-charge of recovery, was the responsible for the safe entry, safe clean up procedures, appropriate PPE for all recovery workers, and a hazard assessment for the most critical items or operations that can cause acute or chronic health effects, illness or disease. Thus, aftermath of Katrina was destructive. It was necessary to remember returning to a work-place that ‘the hazards in flood waters are likely variable and can include sewage, household chemicals and cleaning solutions, petroleum products, hazardous industrial chemicals, pesticides, and flammable liquids. Workers must also be aware of dangers from physical hazards such as obstacles covered by flood waters (storm debris, depressions, drainage openings, ground erosion) and from displaced reptiles or other animals’ (Grimes 2005). The Incident Commander had to provide a team with initial precautionary measures. Water flood contained toxic elements and team had to know that it was necessary to avoid every contact with water by means of clothing and appropriate PPE. PPE of team workers should be composed of the following parts of clothes: serviceable work-boots such as hip waders that prevent water entry; protective gloves; goggles, sun/glare-protective lenses; soft hat; hearing protection; comfortable and light weight clothing, for example, coveralls or long pants. According to the federal government requirements, workers should be protected in accordance to the following standards: ‘adoption of ‘appropriate precautionary measures to be implemented until the work environment is demonstrated to be safe’; initiation of a comprehensive environmental sampling plan; worker training about occupational and environmental health and safety hazards; medical surveillance of cleanup workers; and appropriate decontamination’ (Gulf Coast Cleanup Workers Must Be Protected from Serious Health Hazards 2005). The above mentioned measures of precaution were considered to be the initial ones while for further work people should wear such clothes that would not provide the contact with the surrounding atmosphere. In this case, a respirator was one of the necessary aspects of human wearing because the toxic miasma was still in an air and breathing them could lead to epidemic and different diseases. In addition, it is necessary to possess additional information that the cleanup operations involving ‘incidental exposure to airborne dust produced by drying silt or mist from pumping floodwater should include the use of NIOSH approved, N-95 dust masks. Those given the N-95 dust masks should be instructed on the proper donning and use. For work involving higher, prolonged level of exposures, an occupational safety and health professional should be consulted to reevaluate PPE selection for particular tasks’ (Grimes 2005). Summarizing, it is worth mentioning that Hurricane Katrina was not the only event that brought catastrophic destruction of the area. According to the technique of safety for human life, there are special recommendations concerning rebuilding and returning to work. Following these nitial requirements and recommendations, it is possible to come back to the usual rhythm of life for people. Hence, ‘restoring an urban economy to viability means that job growth must occur in tandem with restoration of housing and the array of social networks and educational institutions that make it possible for people to work while also attending to necessary commitments to family and other social relations’ (Birch and Wachter 2006, p. 158). Concluding, aftermath of Hurricane Katrina can be evaluated as economic destruction of the territory.  Thousands of deaths from the storm and from its outcomes brought the new challenges for citizens of the United States and for authorities that were primarily responsible for removal of Hurricane Katrina’s outcomes.