Washington – Even as subordinates warned him that the flooding of New Orleans was a matter of life or death, Michael Brown, the now-dismissed head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, remained strangely detached from the crisis, e-mails made public this week show.
He mused about his future, joked about a new shirt and wondered how he looked on TV.
On Aug. 31, two days after the storm flooded the city, a FEMA regional director sent Brown an urgent e-mail about patients dying “within hours,” a lack of food and water, hundreds of rescues and a situation “past critical.” Brown’s response: “Thanks for update. Anything specific I need to do or tweak?”
The e-mails were released as part of the ongoing congressional investigation into the federal response to Hurricane Katrina.
The e-mails “reveal that Mr. Brown made few decisions and seemed out of touch,” said Rep. Charlie Melancon, a Louisiana Democrat who pushed for the e-mails’ release. “They depict a leader who seemed overwhelmed.”
The e-mails indicate that Brown had intended to leave the FEMA job before Katrina hit. In one dated Sept. 2, he tells a colleague of his plans: “Last hurrah was supposed to have been Labor Day. I’m trapped now, please rescue me.”
On Sept. 1, Brown had several exchanges with his scheduler, Tillie James, about finding a dog-sitter in suburban Washington, adding, “I should have done my announcement (to leave FEMA) a week early.”
Brown resigned under fire on Sept. 12.
A spokesperson for FEMA, Nicol Andrews, said the most recent e-mail release “may not necessarily paint an accurate picture of what was going on – it’s a sliver of a much larger picture.”
Brown told the House committee investigating Katrina response on Sept. 27 that FEMA “put every asset it had” into the response and defended his management skills and personal involvement.
The e-mails indicate, however, that Brown had many other things on his mind. On the morning the storm hit, Cindy Taylor, FEMA’s deputy director of public affairs, told Brown he looked “fabulous” during a TV appearance and complimented him on his shirt.
Brown joked that he was a “fashion god” and responded: “I got it at Nordstrom’s. … Are you proud of me? Can I quit now? Can I come home now?”
