A Nation Prepared: Improving Emergency Planning and Practice in the U.S. (Benchmark)

Review “Anytown Historical Timeline.” Notice there
are missing details for some very significant events since the 1993 World Trade
Center bombing. All of these events impacted the development of the field of
emergency management, some to a lesser extent than you might imagine. For
example, it would be reasonable to assume that the bombings of the World Trade
Center in 1993 and the Murrah Federal Building in 1995 drastically impacted
preparedness at locations agreed upon to be likely targets for terrorist attacks.
If that were the case; however, significant questions should arise about
persistent vulnerabilities exposed by later terrorist attacks. Likewise, though
the United States has faced numerous devastating natural disasters over the
past century, as was made evident in “Hurricane Katrina: A Nation Still
Unprepared,” our experiences have not necessarily translated into improved
preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery practices. It is your job to
investigate some tough questions about the state of emergency management in the
nation and complete the following two-part assignment:

Part 1:

Research the events and laws on the timeline since 1993 that
are missing details. For each of the seven points:

Investigate what impact these events and legislation had on
preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery in the United States.

Summarize the impacts in the description fields on your own
timeline.

Include the development of key practices, laws, standards,
agencies, organizations, and systems related to these events in your
descriptions where appropriate.

Use the attached “Nation Prepared Timeline PPT Template” to
complete Part 1 of the assignment. Your completed timeline project should be
15-20 slides in length. Include a reference slide with 6-8 sources.

While APA format is not required for the body of this
assignment, solid academic writing is expected, and in-text citations and
references should be presented using APA documentation guidelines, which can be
found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.

You are not required to submit this assignment to Turnitin.

Part 2:

Your goal in Part 1 of the assignment is to demonstrate key
developments in the field related to the seven significant points on “A
Nation Prepared Timeline.” Your goal in Part 2 is analyze some key events
more closely in order to assess the state of preparedness in the nation
today. The objective is to identify s critical vulnerabilities and
recommend corrective actions.

Research three emergencies or disasters from “EMM-300
Historical Timeline” and address the following (750-1,000 words):

How did those events impact the handling of later disasters?
For example, would you say Hurricane Sandy was handled differently or more
successfully based on lessons learned from Katrina? Why or why not? Where can
you pinpoint evidence of improved practice in the emergency management field?

Then, based on your research in this course, discuss the
country’s remaining vulnerabilities. What gains can you confidently say have
been made in the dimensions of preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery
since 911 and Hurricane Katrina? Where is our nation still most vulnerable?
What must be done to address those vulnerabilities? How can government
agencies, organizations, and emergency management systems work more effectively
together to provide seamless responses to major emergency or disaster
situations?

Finally, discuss your responsibility as an emergency
responder or manager and citizen to make sure your community is as prepared as
possible for emergency situations.

Prepare this assignment according to the APA guidelines
found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An
abstract is not required