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Dr. Samantha Montano Profile picture
@SamLMontano
Sep 9, 2020 • 11 tweets • 3 min read • Read on X
It is, as always, important to point out that according to this the president made response decisions based on his belief a disaster myth — that the public panics in times of disaster — which disaster scholars have studied for over 50 years. ImageImage
Whether it’s officials delaying calls for wildfire evacuations or not being truthful w/the public about the scope & severity of an emerging pandemic lives are put at risk — and lost — when public officials make decisions based on a false belief about human behaviors in disasters.
It is horrifying and, frankly, lazy.

We know how to respond to these events. We have a century of damn research on this. We have practitioners with decades of experience. Yet, none of that matters when the person in charge won’t listen.
Here's a tweet from March 3rd where I defined what the word 'panic' actually means.

Here's a whole podcast episode talking about the disaster myths.



Here's an article I wrote about it during Florence
blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/t…

Read Rebecca Solnit's book. Look Quarantelli up on google scholar. This information is accessible.
To be clear -- I do not at all think that is why the President delayed sharing information with the public or failed to take decisive action but...
Okay also just seeing that the timeline is mad at Bob Woodward for not sharing these interviews earlier and like... okay, sure but also this surely is not revelatory or going to change anyone's mind?
I guess I'm just not sure how many more examples you need that the president has lied about something before you understand that he is a habitual liar.

He lies about disasters, among other things, constantly. Like... truly... constantly.
Like... I've written entire articles about it. 🤷‍♀️

Idk man, I just don't know where we go from literally changing a hurricane map with a sharpie...

This is all to say that if I were the president of a country staring down a pandemic I would simply not make response decisions based on The Disaster Myths.

Whatever. I've been tweeting about this for four years so I'm pretty done with it.
When in doubt, double down on the disaster myths!

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More from @SamLMontano

Dr. Samantha Montano Profile picture
Oct 6
Two big hurricanes in the span of two weeks is why I spend so much time harping about the ~capacity~ of our emergency management system.

If Milton manifests in the way it’s looking like it will we are going to need to start watching resources more closely.
A high level way of thinking about this is
1. What resources do we have sitting around that can be sent to Florida
2. What response resources can we pull from the Helene areas that aren’t needed there anymore
I’m not at all saying the response won’t be effective in Florida — just that there is a juggle that is going to have to happen here. This is reminiscent to me of the Harvey/ Irma juggle (which was managed — capacity broke with Maria).
Read 6 tweets
Dr. Samantha Montano Profile picture
Oct 5
Shoutout to journalists working to cover this absolute mess & try to provide clarity (especially for survivors) in a moment of physical & informational crisis.

🧵of articles I’m quoted in w/ accurate information about FEMA and Helene #EMGTwitter
Washington Post: FEMA deploys to rough terrain after Helene as it faces criticism, fights misinformation

Gift link:
wapo.st/4dBWqoq
Washington Post: why Helene’s flooring caught North Carolina off guard

Gift link: wapo.st/4ePDweT
Read 8 tweets
Dr. Samantha Montano Profile picture
Oct 4
This is a learning opportunity.

There are two parts to the emergency management system—the formal & informal.

The formal system includes all the hundreds/ thousands of government agencies, and big organizations like the Red Cross who expect to be involved when disasters happen Image
The informal system is everyone else from small local nonprofits to mutual aid groups. It includes emergent groups and spontaneous volunteers. And, most importantly it includes the survivors of the event — yes, they are ACTIVE participants in response.
The formal system is good because it brings money, resources, and expertise. The informal is great because it brings local knowledge, often an element of compassion, and extra hands.
Read 7 tweets
Dr. Samantha Montano Profile picture
Sep 30
When big disasters happen people almost immediately start asking why the president isn't there.

I understand the instinct -- the visual of the country's leader being there in the midst of a crisis is strong. It might be temporarily comforting but operationally it's bad.
When the president comes to town (even on a good day) everything has to shut down -- air space, roads, etc. First responders & other officials are reassigned to secure & facilitate the president's arrival.

In a disaster that means search & rescue stops, help to survivors stops.
What you need from the president in a disaster is to sign the disaster declaration requests from the governors. That has happened.

Once the immediate response has ended (i.e., saving lives) Biden will visit. That's the time to push him for additional recovery assistance.
Read 6 tweets
Dr. Samantha Montano Profile picture
Jun 3
FEMA loves to just slap us all across the face at every opportunity. Unbelievable. Image
Everyone in EM hi-ed: hey our programs are really struggling and we could use some support.

FEMA: what if instead we make a pretend university that will be in perceived competition to your programs?

Well done everyone. 10/10. No notes.
Watching @fema find a way to make things worse while also spitting on the work of the past 20 years of EM hi-Ed is really something.
Read 11 tweets
Dr. Samantha Montano Profile picture
Sep 29, 2023
With the flooding in NYC, many people are rightly concerned about how FEMA will be involved in the response given the (seemingly) impending shutdown.

I'm going to try and explain this as simply as possible based on my current understanding. #EMGTwitter
The Disaster Relief Fund is the pot of $ used to pay for response & recovery when a community receives a Presidential Declaration.

For months, FEMA & White House have been asking Congress to refill the Disaster Relief Fund because it was very low.
At the end of August FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell made the correct decision to implement “Immediate Needs Funding”. This meant FEMA stopped recovery payments across the country in an effort to conserve remaining funds for life-saving response efforts
Read 15 tweets

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