Newsweek: Communications: FEMA—Trouble on 'Mt. Weather'

[RamboLiberal]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11436344/site/newsweek/

Feb. 27, 2006 issue - One of the more disquieting questions to surface during congressional investigations into Hurricane Katrina concerns Mt. Weather, a huge government bunker under the Blue Ridge Mountains west of Washington, D.C. Originally built as a nuclear-war refuge for top federal officials—reportedly including the president—Mt. Weather, run by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, is supposed to be one of the government's key communications centers in a crisis. According to historical accounts, the hollowed-out mountain contains office buildings, private apartments and dormitories, hospitals, cafeterias and even a small lake fed by freshwater springs. Known to government officials for many years as FEMA's "classified location," after the cold war ended Mt. Weather went semipublic, even hosting emergency-management seminars. But it also has remained a critical command post; in government jargon, Mt. Weather staffers are on duty 24/7/365.

But according to an e-mail sent by former FEMA chief Michael Brown last Aug. 30, some Mt. Weather personnel were not exactly on the ball on the day after Katrina hit the Gulf Coast. "I am ready to blow up IT support at the mountain," Brown told aides Brooks Altshuler and Patrick Rhode. "They can't seem to get me connected... or even care about getting me connected." Brown told NEWSWEEK that he was indeed complaining about his treatment by personnel at Mt. Weather, though his complaint related to people who worked in an unclassified computer office rather than on sensitive emergency communications systems that he says he can't talk about because they are still classified. Russ Knocke, a Homeland Security Department spokesman, insisted that all Brown's e-mail is talking about is a "trivial" computer issue, in which the FEMA director was having trouble downloading e-mail files to his BlackBerry from his laptop. Knocke said that by the day after Katrina—the same morning Brown sent his e-mail—a FEMA truck carrying some of the government's most sophisticated telecom gear had arrived in Louisiana to give Brown ample means to keep in touch. Homeland officials declined to discuss Mt. Weather and FEMA officials did not respond to NEWSWEEK messages requesting comment.

[ixion]

1. misdirection and finger-pointing, nothing more, IMO

What, this is FEMA's first hurricane? They didn't know about the levies? They couldn't make a phone call? They didn't have permission to do anything?

This is all BS. In this case, it's BS in an attempt to cover, at the very least, criminal negligence, IMO.

[wakeme2008]

2. Mount Weather is NSA

:)

[rodeodance]

3. looks like they didn't care either.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

4. All anyone had to do was call in a terrorist attack report.... say the

Mujahedeen were in the New Orleans streets.... they'd have been there in hours.