Emergency Relief Logistics

Logistics Spectrum, Apr/Jun 2007 by Aydamirov, Nariman

Throughout history logistics has been a part of our everyday lives. As a matter of a fact, it has always affected people in one way or another. As consumers, we buy goods that go through some logistical channel before becoming available to us. It is because of effective logistics that we can purchase, for example, a computer online and receive it literally in a matter of days without going to a store to buy it. Therefore, we can certainly say that logistics makes our lives easier and satisfies us in many ways. Logistics becomes an even more essential player in an emergency situation. Emergency relief logistics, as we might call it, is crucial for any area that is affected by a disaster. Of course, the severity of the disaster determines the demand for the level of logistics systems in an emergency relief process.

The Main Task: Rebuilding

The main issue during the rebuilding phase of emergency logistics is the ability to reach places that have been affected. If the distribution centers are impacted by the disaster, then the closest ones need to be assigned to trucks to supply the areas with the maintenance materials for restoration. The United States government, along with emergency relief agencies, signs contracts with distribution centers, warehouses and production facilities in order to efficiently utilize the resources to rebuild the sites, with the priority provided by the agencies. Infrastructure comes first in the priority lines. Since it is crucial to have the highways and ports running to have access to the places where the disasters have occurred these need to be rebuilt and be ready for use as soon as possible. Of course, depending on geographical locations, oil refineries, pipelines and airports need immediate attention. For example, more than 70 truck lines, 50 ocean carriers, 16 barge lines and six Class I rail lines serve the Port of New Orleans. Therefore, solving the infrastructure issues became extremely imperative for the United States during the emergency relief after Katrina.1

Eventually, people that were evacuated from the disaster sites must return to their homes. The hardest challenge becomes providing adequate housing in demanded numbers for residents who are returning after the disaster. Rebuilding houses for the people who do not have shelters as a consequence of a disaster can be a very labor-intensive operation. During the winter and spring of 2006 the United States government had a way to solve this problem for people who needed shelter in Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi. Threeroom trailers were made in a central United States factory, with a bottom that could be fit to a railcar for transportation via railroad. More than 4,000 trailer houses were sent to Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi for people who were in need of shelter.2 This solved a big logistics problem for the construction companies since the work load of restoration and rebuilding was reduced. The only task that needed to be done was to transfer the trailers from the railcars to destination neighborhoods. Of course, there was the challenge of transferring the trailer homes to the areas that did not have access to the railroad. But this challenge was relatively easy to deal with. After all, the use of trailers solved a bigger problem, which was providing shelter for the people whose houses were destroyed by the disaster. This was done efficiently and effectively in a shorter time, once the planning stage was well thought out and organized. Again, the accurate utilization of a certain mode of transportation, railways in this case, can ease the overall problem that nations face logistically.

Trucking - A High-demand Mode

Trucking is usually the most reliable mode of transportation in emergency relief. But the trucking companies need to have scheduled plans and most importantly, effective distribution among the truck routes. Timing is also important for the long supply chain that is dependent on every player along the chain. Production must be quick and predictable (materials would be used in rebuilding of houses and infrastructure); warehouses must make maximum use of space available, but also have the loads accessible at all times with less labor work; companies must be working on logistical difficulties that they might face in delivering the loads to the affected areas, and they must find ways to solve any problems that might occur.

During natural disasters there may be enough transportation companies, but there may not be enough distribution centers or warehouses to make use of these resources. This is because of the limited number of distribution centers close to the affected areas. Sometimes trucks are helpful even without a need for warehouses. For example, during the hurricanes of 2005 emergency relief agencies announced donation hours in neighboring towns to New Orleans and had trucks at the stated areas accepting donations. Once the trucks filled they would leave for the places where the cargo was needed. There are other ways that companies can always implement their resources for better uses. Solving these kinds of problems becomes the task of managers who are challenged with these logistical issues that are not there everyday.