Saving Lives: Including People with Disabilities in Emergency Planning

Abstract

The National Council on Disability (NCD) is pleased to present this report, titled Saving Lives: Including People with Disabilities in Emergency Planning. Under its congressional mandate, NCD is charged with the responsibility to gather information on the development and implementation of federal laws, policies, programs, and initiatives that affect people with disabilities. In 2003, as a result of the Administration’s initiatives in homeland security, NCD committed to evaluate the development of the Federal Government’s work in that area as well as in the areas of emergency preparation and disaster relief as they relate to and affect Americans with disabilities.

All too often in emergency situations the legitimate concerns of people with disabilities are overlooked or swept aside. In areas ranging from the accessibility of emergency information to the evacuation plans for high-rise buildings, great urgency surrounds the need for responding to these people’s concerns in all planning, preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation activities. The man-made homeland security terrorist event of September 11, 2001, as well as the recent energy blackouts in the U.S. Northeast and Midwest and, more recently, the natural disaster hurricane events in Florida and the tsunami event of December 26, 2004, underscore the need to pay attention to the concerns raised in this report.

The decisions the Federal Government makes, the priority it accords to civil rights, and the methods it adopts to ensure uniformity in the ways agencies handle their disability-related responsibilities are likely to be established in the early days of an emergency situation and be difficult to change if not set on the right course at the outset. By way of this report, NCD offers advice to help the Federal Government establish policies and practices in these areas. This report provides examples of community efforts with respect to people with disabilities, but by no means does it provide a comprehensive treatment of the emergency preparedness, disaster relief, or homeland security program efforts by state and local governments.

This report provides an overview of steps the Federal Government should take to build a solid and resilient infrastructure that will enable the government to include the diverse populations of people with disabilities in emergency preparedness, disaster relief, and homeland security programs. This infrastructure would incorporate access to technology, physical plants, programs, and communications. It also would include procurement and emergency programs and services.

NCD commends the Administration and those in leadership positions for the issuance of the July 22, 2004, Executive Order on individuals with disabilities and emergency preparedness. In addition, NCD acknowledges the work of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Communications Commission in their efforts to ensure that Americans with disabilities are included in the developing infrastructure.

It is our expectation that, through this report, NCD can promote a focused dialogue and communicate critical information to the Administration at the earliest practicable time to address issues of importance to people with disabilities in the ongoing development of DHS infrastructure.

NCD stands ready to work with the Administration to improve the nation’s homeland security, emergency preparedness, and disaster relief infrastructure for all Americans.