When the storm hits: What Hurricane Katrina still teaches federal leaders about continuity of operations

One of the most vivid lessons from my Public Buildings Service career came from a building manager responsible for a federal courthouse in downtown New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina.

As floodwaters rose and much of the city lost power and communications, he faced a situation no training manual had fully anticipated. Supply chains were cut off, transportation routes were impassable, and communications systems were unreliable at best. There was no playbook for a disaster of that magnitude.

What he relied on instead was preparation, relationships and resourcefulness as he worked through the night to secure and preserve the historic courthouse.

Read more at NextGov/FCW