No matter whether Y2K turns out to be a disaster of biblical proportions or a virtual hoax, government disaster planners believe they will be ready.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency plans to have over 800 employees on the job from 28 December to 4 January at locations including the underground bunker below Virginia's Mount Weather, executive associate director Lacy Suiter said.
FEMA has updated its disaster preparations to include Y2K and has worked with the Defense Department to "develop plans" on the topic, Suiter told the Senate Y2K committee in testimony on its y2k.senate.gov site.
The Senate committee had planned to hold a hearing in Washington on Thursday, but a spokesman said budget legislation occupied too much of the members' time. The staff posted the testimony online instead.
Witnesses said that worst-case Y2K scenarios would include officials calling out troops to restore power, distribute food -- or even impose curfews and quell riots. If that's necessary, National Guard leaders say they're ready.
"FEMA becomes the national contact upon declaration of a national disaster, and we coordinate with FEMA on site as needed," said Raymond Rees, a US Army major general and vice chief of the National Guard Bureau. "FEMA may request military support through DOMS [DOD Department Director of Military Support]."
The Stafford Act of 1984 allows the military to help during natural disasters. After a natural disaster -- and presumably during Y2K disruptions -- a governor can ask the president to declare a state of emergency. Once the emergency has been declared, soldiers on active duty can be deployed as directed by FEMA.
In August 1992, the Army was deployed in South Florida to respond to Hurricane Andrew, as well as a month later on the island of Kauai after Hurricane Iniki. Different states have taken different approaches, Rees said.
"Some have extended the operations center down to unit level, with a small number of individuals ready at local armories. One state decided to have all units conduct monthly training during the first weekend of January," Rees said.
During a July meeting called "National Conference on Presidential Powers and Executive Orders" organized by an anti-UN advocacy group, some conservative legislators warned that President Clinton could see Y2K disruptions as a convenient excuse to grab power, call out the troops, and declare martial law.
Other officials warned against letting sensitive or incomplete information be released to the public.
"It is also important to insure to the extent possible, that incomplete, inaccurate, and/or old data is not released by government agencies. An example of this is the 'Navy Report' that not only caught the national chairman, John Koskinen, by surprise but caused a rash of inquiries at the state level," said David Gay, a retired major general and chairman of Connecticut's Y2K committee.
The so-called Navy Report caused brief embarrassment for a White House official last month when she spoke to the Washington DC Y2K group. All officials submitting testimony said they were confident that emergency services would be prepared, but one stressed that Americans might panic anyway.
"We are focusing on potential overreaction by the public," said Ellen Gordon, an Iowa emergency official and former president of the National Emergency Management Association.
"For example, we need to be prepared for the possibility of shortages of food, water and other supplies in the event that people begin to stockpile. Various polls and surveys indicate that public concern may ultimately be a major Y2K issue."
