For a reader whose memory stretches back into the 1980s, you might recall the above track from Dexy's Midnight Runners. Over the weekend it was turned into a slogan by some residents of the US East Coast who refused to evacuate in the face of the hurricane. “Come on, Irene!” proclaimed the posters of the protesters. “We can cope” was the sub text.
As the hurricane, downgraded to a Cat 1 storm, moves on the inevitable questions are being asked. This was no Katrina so was there over-reaction by politicians and press?
New York mayor Michael Bloomberg is categorical that he would make the same decisions again. “We were unwilling to risk the life of a single New Yorker” was his defiant assessment. Two million people were evacuated; transit systems were shut down, and thankfully the death toll seems to have been kept to a minimum.
Damned if you do; damned if you don't. The legacy of Katrina lives on, but we believe the essence of all crisis planning is what we term “prudent over-reaction.” Irene was reduced to a tropical storm but it was 400 miles wide, slow moving, taking half a day to pass over and still has the potential to cause flood surges in low-lying areas.
Imagine the headlines if the administration had not acted too decisively. Too little, too late, perhaps?
For information on how LINK can help your crisis planning, contact LINK Associates International by emailing info@linkassociates.com or phoning +441332222299.
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