Government was ready for Gustav

While we're not ready to declare that it was a "heckuva job," it's obvious that state and federal officials did learn lessons from Hurricane Katrina three years ago and are much better prepared to deal with natural disaster in the Gulf Coast this hurricane season.

Of course, it also helped that Gustav made landfall in Louisiana as a Category 2 storm (winds 96 to 110 mph), a weaker-than-expected strength, and didn't directly slam New Orleans. Katrina weighed in as a Category 3 hurricane (winds 111-130 mph).

We don't see any repeats of 2005 when President Bush praised Michael Brown for a "heckuva job" shortly after Katrina went ashore, only to be followed by a massively bungled federal relief effort and Brown's resignation.

By way of contrast, while Gustav was howling:

* About 14,000 air and Army guardsmen were deployed and 50,000 were ready to respond to help and maintain order. Gov. Chris Gregoire activated the Washington National Guard and said that at the request of Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, personnel and equipment were "ready to do what is needed to assist in the response to this emergency in the Gulf Coast states."

* The American Red Cross said 45,000 people were in its shelters, compared with 30,000 during Katrina.

* Earlier, emergency officials said cartons of food, water, blankets and other supplies to sustain 1 million people for three days were ready to be distributed.

* About 2 million people were immediately evacuated from Louisiana as the storm approached. The levee system in New Orleans that was battered and breached during Katrina held through Gustav, even though post-Katrina reconstruction is only 25 percent complete and won't be finished until 2011.

Katrina left a lasting impression on a nation by graphically reminding us of the unbridled fury and destruction that can result from natural disaster. It also left behind a lasting lesson: We can't stop hurricanes and tornadoes (and earthquakes and volcanoes), but we certainly must be as prepared as possible to deal with them when they hit.

Speaking of learning from experience. ...

The state Department of Transportation is to be commended for adapting to developments and pulling wireless Internet access from highway rest stops.

The service started two years ago at 28 of the state's 42 rest areas, but DOT officials say not enough people were using it to offset the cost.

Wi-Fi was set up at rest areas so travelers could check road conditions, e-mail and just take a break from driving. Now many motorists use cellular telephones and other devices with Internet access.

Rapid advancements in technology have essentially rendered hot spots like these obsolete already. It's something that happens a lot along the information superhighway, and the DOT was wise to adapt and save the money for something else.

* Members of the Yakima Herald-Republic editorial board are Michael Shepard, Sarah Jenkins, Bill Lee and Karen Troianello.

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