Hurricane Katrina: CDC’s Response
As of October 17, 2005, 614 CDC experts have been deployed to aid in public health response and rebuilding efforts since Hurricane Katrina hit. CDC experts with special skills in a variety of service areas - veterinary, public health nursing, occupational health, laboratory, medical, epidemiology, sanitation, environmental health, disease surveillance, public information and health risk communication - were called to use their knowledge and experience to help.
In Atlanta, CDC coordinated the national public health response from the Marcus Emergency Operations Center. Health communication teams provided the best information available about hurricane-related health risks to the thousands of public health and medical personnel involved in the response efforts, and CDC’s Strategic National Stockpile sent more than $38 million worth of emergency medical supplies, vaccine, and pharmaceuticals to evacuation and response operation centers in need.
Initial efforts in the field focused on monitoring for and controlling potential disease outbreaks among evacuees and responders. In addition to meeting immediate medical needs, health officials were concerned that any number of viral or bacterial infections could emerge and spread quickly among residents in crowded shelters. While isolated cases of infection were reported, no large outbreaks occurred.
More recent CDC response efforts have focused on mitigating the health threats facing evacuees as they return to their flooded or damaged communities – evaluating drinking water, raising awareness about the harmful health effects of mold, reducing the risk of contracting rabies from stray animals, preventing injuries from electrical fires and car accidents, and addressing mental health concerns. Looking ahead, CDC teams are now also focused on helping local partners rebuild public health infrastructure in the Gulf Coast region so that local public health teams can continue to protect the long-term health and safety of residents.
Some efforts currently underway include:
- The CDC Lab Team is working with state and local laboratory officials in Louisiana to determine how to rebuild public health laboratory capacity in the state.
- The CDC Occupational Health Team is conducting a cross-sectional prevalence study of injuries, illness and occupational stress among New Orleans police officers. The team is also providing information on mold hazards and remediation to city business leaders and local landlords.
- The CDC Environmental Health Team is helping FEMA determine the best methods to evaluate the potential health effects of placing temporary housing (trailers) on property formerly used to grow rice, cotton or pecans.
- CDC experts continue to track trends in reported illnesses and injuries. In Louisiana, between September 8 and October 4, the most common diagnoses in reporting hospitals and clinics were injuries and acute respiratory illness. As of October 4, falls continued to be the major causes of injuries, followed by motor vehicle crash-related injuries.
The CDC Foundation continues to support CDC’s response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Through the Emergency Preparedness and Response Fund, the Foundation is supporting efforts to rebuild public health infrastructure so that public health teams can protect residents from seasonal illness, chronic disease and future disasters.