Question

How well do you think the city (and supporting forces from elsewhere) did in responding to the CSX tunnel fire? What strengths and weaknesses of preparedness were evident in this crisis? Baltimore Tunnel Fire of 2001 case

Answer 1

Ans: The city managed the situation well despite the challenges faced by the first responders (Usfa.fema.gov,2001). The interagency communication, cooperation, and coordination of resources were the most critical features in successfully managing the crisis. The responding agencies provided the equipment, planning, and skills to control and further limit the damage to the environment, health, and welfare of the citizens and their property (Usfa.fema.gov,2001). The United States Coast Guard used floating booms to protect the Inner Harbor from contamination and hazardous runoff (Carter et al., 2002). One of the weaknesses, according to Incident Commander, was that precise information regarding the chemicals was lacking, and volunteer representatives were hard to locate for specific tasks to be accomplished. These communication problems, though, would have occurred in any crisis of such a magnitude.