Logistics

"The battle is decided by the quartermasters before the first shot is fired." (Erwin Rommel, WW2 German General) Logistics is not just about anticipating what supplies will be needed and acquiring them, but

• knowing who needs what supplies and when
• moving those supplies to where they are needed

In a disaster, many of the needed supplies will already be present in the disaster zone. The problem is locating and recovering them and moving them to where they are needed. For example, much of the food in houses may go unused because they have no way to cook it.

For the purposes of disaster preparation and response, I am proposing an unconventional scoping to include three categories:

• Supplies
• Facilities
• Services

Action items:

1. Identify what shortages will impede effective response.
2. Identify what can have disproportionate positive impact on response.
3. Methods for locating and recovering in-area resources
4. Methods to facilitate aid arriving from outside