Chain of Command
"Use the modern governments at the state level. I think there is a disaster relief coordinator in each state, with someone in that office at the national level as well. They get out through radio to the municipalities, where the mayors (or their equivalents) are in charge. The latter then do a sweep of their area somehow, but I'm not entirely sure what method they use. Not everyone or every area has TV, so it has to be radio for the bulletins. Churches could be of use since they are the one grassroots organization that exists here. Other NGOs are so scarce as to be useless with the single exception of Red Cross, since there is a chapter in every place."
- an email from Francis X. Hezel, director of MicSem since 1972 and worker there since 1963
A Basic Chain of Command Outline
What: Each state's modern government will be used to head evacuation. The governments' duties include delegating the Micronesia Red Cross' state efforts, delegating the local municipality governments to administer relief services as long as the state government retains responsibility over policy and proper administration, and keeping the peace among the people. The national government will be in charge of foreign aid, but it will not be directly involved with the people like the state government and local (municipality and city) governments will be.
How: Each state's constitution allows for the governor to declare a state of emergency in the event of a tsunami, which will aid in the state's ability to keep the peace through government officials by restricting civil rights that do not preserve public peace, health, or safety.
Why: Like in most nations, the national government is too far removed from the people. State governments are tailored to each specific island and its needs. Although the national government will play a minor role, most of the authority that the people of Micronesia will come into contact with will be from the states.
State constitutions:
Pohnpei
Yap
Kosrae
Chuuk
What: Emergency relief, such as the distribution of food, temporary shelter, transportation, and direction/instruction will be the responsibility of each state's chapter of the Micronesian Red Cross.
How: Micronesia Red Cross volunteers and trained members of Micronesian communities will be direct island inhabitants to their safety zones, drive.
Why: The Micronesia Red Cross is the most pervasive NGO in the country, and it has a chapter on each state. Currently, each has a regional disaster preparedness program, and some of the Micronesian states have included them in their emergency preparedness and response manuals. The society already has contacts with the local and national governments, so integrating them with the government would not involve too much extra effort. The success of the Micronesia Red Cross has already been seen in 2002, when it aided Chuuk after typhoon Chataan.
JICA Emergency Relief in Response to Typhoon Disaster in the Federal States of Micronesia
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Micronesia Red Cross Profile:
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What: Municipality governments work directly with the Micronesian Red Cross, giving instructions about which cities to attend to. Municipality governments will also give specific instructions to the city/community governments: that they have to send a certain amount of people to be trained, that they need to have a communal meeting place from which to evacuate, and that they need a certain number of vehicles and means of transportation.
How: The plan will be pre-prepared through education (Team 3). The specific numbers for necessary trained workers and vehicles will be based on statistics for each city. The municipalities are also in charge of broadcasting the event of the tsunami throughout its cities.
Why: Although state governments are fairly small, municipality governments interact with the people on an even closer level. Also, there are only a handful of municipalities per state, so the Micronesia Red Cross will only have to work with these few rather than the hundreds of cities.
What: Each evacuating city must send community members to be trained as evacuation workers by the Micronesia Red Cross in thorough disaster and evacuation response.
How: The number of evacuation workers is based on the population of the city or community. There should be one person sent for every 50 community members. Each city will choose their own evacuation workers through their local governments. Training will be done through a conference, as organized by Team 3 (Education).
Why: The Micronesia Red Cross needs more trained and knowledgeable workers to distribute relief aid, transport community members, and direct other community members during evacuation. Since outside volunteers are not a reliable source, man power must come from within the communities themselves. These workers live in the community, so they will be localized and present at the time when immediate response and evacuation are necessary. They are also familiar with the land and know their community members well, so they have 1) the know-how and 2) the heart to care for the rest of their neighbors.