Amanda Ripley Author of The Unthinkable

Fascinating article in the NY Times about “virtual autopsies” being done on soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. Since 2004, CT scans have been given to every service man and woman killed (autopsies have been performed since 2001)—a new procedure implemented by Captain Craig Mallack, a Navy pathologist.

The CT scans have been valuable pragmatically and psychologically, it seems. For the military, the scans reveal blind spots in equipment. The findings have already led to improvements in body armor and medical gear.

But the detailed analysis is also important to the families of the deceased, who crave information about their loved ones’ last moments. According to the Times, about 80-90% of families ask to see the report--which comes with a warning not to read it alone.

An example of the good that can come from using expensive technology wisely--and then sharing the results.

In case you missed it, Wal-Mart has agreed to a nearly $2 m payout with the Nassau County DA’s office to avoid charges in the tragic Black Friday trampling death of a worker.

The agreement included no admission of guilt by Wal-Mart, but it does exact a promise that the retailer will work with independent experts to implement a better crowd-management plan for post-Thanksgiving Day sales. Wal-Mart also agreed to set up a $400,000 victims’ compensation and remuneration fund and give $1.5 million to Nassau County social services programs and nonprofit groups.

Wal-Mart says the new plans will apply to all Wal-Mart stores in N.Y. What about the other some 4,000 Wal-Mart facilities in the rest of the U.S.? (Not to mention the 3,100 outside the U.S.)

According to Wal-Mart:

“As we explore how we can make our stores even safer for our associates and customers, we will consider how aspects of this plan could apply to stores outside New York.”

Seems to me it would make excellent business (and moral) sense to do more than consider.

Fatigue is being named as a possible cause of the crash of Colgan Air Flight 3407 near Buffalo. The brain performs horribly when it is tired. This is not a new issue. According to the NTSB, fatigue has been related to 250 airplane accident fatalities over the last 16 years, including:

-Corporate Airlines Flight 5966: The NSTB concluded the “pilots’ unprofessional behavior during the flight and their fatigue likely contributed” to the October 19, 2004 crash.

-American Airlines Flight 1420: Fatigue was connected to the crash that killed 11 people.  The pilot, who had been on duty for more than 13 hours, attempted to land the plane during a thunderstorm.

-Delta Connection Flight 6448: The NTSB concluded that “the captain’s fatigue, which affected his ability to effectively plan for and monitor the approach and landing” was one of many factors contributing to the crash.

-Pinnacle Airlines Flight 4712: The NTSB claimed that the pilot’s poor decision making resulted from “fatigue produced by a long, demanding duty day.”

“It’s like having too much to drink,” Bill Voss, president of the Flight Safety Foundation, tells CNN about pilot fatigue. The brain has trouble making decisions and paying attention to important cues when it is tired.

Regional airlines are disproportionally involved in crashes related to pilot fatigue. As Joe Sharkey writes on his blog High Anxiety, “many regional airline pilots work in a culture of chronic fatigue, in a sub-tier of the air-travel industry where captains might make $50,000 a year and first officers might make less than $20,000.”

Pilots working for regional airlines are often overworked and underpaid. Alex Lapointe, a regional airline pilot, tells the BBC that many of his colleagues make so little (starting salary of $20,000) they’ve been forced to take second jobs.  Sharkey suggests that the underlying culture (low-pay, no sleep) of regional airlines must change in order to avoid future accidents. 

Louis Caldera, director of the White House Military Office, the same one responsible for the recent NYC flyover, has resigned. In his resignation letter to a furious President Obama, Caldera wrote that the situation had become a distraction—an extremely expensive distraction, too. According to military officials, the mission and accompanying photo shoot cost the American people $328,835. The White House also released a seven-page report and a photo of the flyover yesterday (the report can be downloaded here).  The report points to a series of miscommunications, namely that Caldera failed to read an email informing him of the flyover until after the incident had already occurred. According to CNN, the sole responsiblity of informing important people such as White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs lay with Caldera. Not surprisingly, Obama has ordered a review of the White House Military Office

Fires in Santa Barbara have destroyed at least 1,300 acres and countless homes.  As of today, over 30,00 residents have been ordered to evacuate.  But what about those who stayed behind to defend their homes from impending fire? The LA Times reports that George Quinn fought off the flames with garden hoses, and had some strong words for the 1,400 firefighters helping to put out the blaze: “The damn firefighters were no help.”

Santa Barbara County Fire Chief Tom Franklin would probably disagree with Quinn. According to USA Today, ten firefighters suffered smoke inhalation, burns and other smoke-related injuries. 

Now the Senator from Louisiana is in an old-fashioned brawl with the White House over his hold on the nomination of Craig Fugate at FEMA, with the respective spokespeople sending hate messages back and forth across the playground, via reporters.

Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs called Vitter’s maneuver “political posturing”. Then Vitter’s office fired back that it had nothing to do with politics and everything to do with reforming FEMA…

Here’s Mike Allen’s take on the feud in Politico:

“I can assure you that this isn’t about politics,” Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) writes in an e-mail complaining about the Obama administration’s handling of his inquires about FEMA.

But click on a “PUTTING LOUISIANA FIRST” logo embedded right next to that quote in the mail, and you’re whisked away to the David Vitter for U.S. Senate website, which says: “We need your help in order to win this campaign.”

An update on Sen. Vitter’s hold on FEMA nominee Craig Fugate. On Monday, Vitter, Fugate and the acting director of FEMA met to try to talk it out, but it seems Vitter is not done making his point.

Why does Vitter care so much about Grand Isle? That is the mystery. Grand Isle is a small fishing and recreational community located on a barrier island. A lovely but dangerous place. The kind of place that has been battered by hundreds of storms. The kind of place that will flood again.

Vitter seems to want the federal government to fund a gym, library and firehouse in this area regardless of the risks. That seems irresponsible and reckless. The kind of pork-barrel entitlement thinking that a Republican like Vitter should abhor.

Now I realize that for the residents of Grand Isle and places like it, the equation is not so simple. These are people who have lived there for generations. But the question is, should we expect federal taxpayers to sponsor the rebuilding of a place that is not safe to live in? Does that not doom us to repeat our failures over and over again?

Why not let the locals pay for this kind of development, if it must be done? The state seems to be on its way to doing just that. So it’s unclear why this is the battle Vitter wants to fight… Meanwhile, hurricane season begins in 26 days. And FEMA still has no leader.

By the way, I called Vitter’s press secretary on Monday to learn more about this, but I haven’t heard back yet. In the meantime, his office did release this not-very-helpful statement.

Just did my first webinar of all time. I am still not sure how to explain what a webinar actually is, but I have to say, it was surprisingly pleasant. Basically, myself and two emergency managers California and Florida chatted with about 250 people about how to craft warnings (from hurricanes to wildfires to swine flu) that people will actually listen to.

Thanks to Governing Magazine for inviting me and to Visa Public Sector for sponsoring the show. I learned a lot from the listeners and my fellow panelists--Ron Lane, Emergency Services Director in San Diego County, CA, and Pete McNally, Emergency Management Director, Polk County, FL.

To hear the audio of the webinar, go here. (It’s possible I called Joe Biden a “yahoo,” but I said it with affection.)