Editorial: Prepare for the worst

Monday, Sept. 19, 2005 | 8:58 a.m.

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina's devastation, which was compounded by the lack of a coordinated response to the disaster by government at all levels, there has been considerable fingerpointing among local, state and federal officials as to just who dropped the ball. In light of the recriminations, Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman told those attending a Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce luncheon last week that Hurricane Katrina should act as a wakeup call to officials throughout the Las Vegas Valley.

In particular, Goodman noted, the existing patchwork of jurisdictions in the Las Vegas Valley has the potential to stymie an effective response if a disaster were to strike here. Providing leadership and giving a single, authoritative voice of information to the public could well be impossible if a valley-wide disaster hit, Goodman contends, because officials from Clark County and the cities of Las Vegas, North Las Vegas and Henderson could all be involved. "It would be like a Tower of Babel if a disaster occurred," Goodman said. "This is a good time to start talking about consolidation." Goodman acknowledges that the political reality is that it would be very difficult to create a consolidated government for the valley, despite the inherent efficiency that would bring, because elected officials don't want to give up their power.

While we think Goodman makes an excellent case, his argument would be more persuasive if the city of Las Vegas had a better record in participating in local disaster drills. In August 2003 Las Vegas and other municipalities -- including Boulder City, Mesquite and Henderson -- weren't involved in Determined Promise, a massive terrorism training exercise set up by Clark County officials that, ironically, was supposed to work on improving the coordination of local governments if a disaster hit. (North Las Vegas' participation was limited.)

Las Vegas often is mentioned by federal Homeland Security Department officials as one of a handful of likely terrorist targets in the United States. It is imperative that local government officials do a much better job of making preparations for a disaster, including more valleywide training and drills. Our lives could depend on whether local officials are actually ready -- and work together with each other -- if a disaster strikes.