In 2005, the Superdome in New Orleans served as a mass shelter to over 25,000 people during Hurricane Katrina. Despite its shortcomings, that stadium and nearby convention center were the only venues able to accommodate the city’s critical sheltering needs. Those accommodations, though, were inadequate, with limited power, plumbing, and other resources.
In line with its preparedness mission of prevention, protection, mitigation, response, and recovery, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) launched a new national initiative of Mission Ready Packages and extended the opportunity for stadiums to be part of the Mission Ready process. Although the process is rigorous and not cost-free, and only those close to the venues would have access, it is a start.
FEMA traditionally prepares and deploys these packages, as requested by states and communities. Headquartered in Lexington, Kentucky, the National Emergency Management Association (NEMA) administers the Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC). Since the 1990s, EMAC has helped develop expert teams that deploy to disaster-hit areas. Ongoing online and in-person education includes regular professional meetings for emergency management directors, over 600 emergency management degree programs nationwide, Emergency Management Institute courses, and now a new FEMA Disaster University. All 50 states have training directors, as almost every state has a disaster each year.
EMAC teams include cadres of emergency management personnel who have the disaster experience and technical expertise to supplement local disaster response. Mission Ready Packages have traditionally included such expert personnel, plus equipment, commodities, travel, lodging, meals, and more. They can reduce the time between the onset of the disaster and initial response and the recovery phase when requesting and disbursing funds and administering disaster assistance paperwork.
Mission Ready Initiative
In 2024, FEMA added a Mission Ready Venue Initiative that allows stadiums the opportunity to assist their local communities as a resource for immediate assistance following a disaster and to be fully prepared in advance. This exciting initiative has attracted the national attention of local leaders, stadium owners, their communities, emergency management personnel, and the public. FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell, in launching this new national initiative, shared FEMA’s vision:
During large-scale emergencies, like the COVID-19 pandemic, hurricanes, or tornados, we’ve seen how large music, sports and entertainment venues can serve as a safe space for communities. This new strategy we’re launching with the NFL [National Football League] is a groundbreaking opportunity to help our partners use these venues for emergency response and recovery needs, while keeping communities safe and making them more resilient. While we are starting with the NFL, all venues across sports organizations and leagues can become assets to their communities, and I encourage them to join in this collaborative effort.
NFL Chief Security Officer Cathy Lanier, former Metropolitan Police Department chief and a graduate of the John F. Kennedy School of Government’s State and Local Leaders Program, supports FEMA’s Mission Ready initiative:
Stadiums are valuable community assets that are often used in times of disasters. This designation reflects the role that many stadiums play, not only on Sundays, but especially in times of need. We are proud to work with FEMA and first responders at the local and state level to ensure disaster response agencies have the information and tools they need to help a community recover when disaster strikes.
Thus, the NFL is partnering with FEMA to designate their contracted stadiums as mission-capable venues for response and recovery, providing access to critical and lifesaving services after an event. The initial facilities to receive designations include the following:
- MetLife Stadium, home of the New York Jets and the New York Giants, in East Rutherford, New Jersey;
- Lumen Field, home of the Seattle Seahawks in Washington;
- Acrisure Stadium, home of the Pittsburgh Steelers in Pennsylvania; and
- Raymond James Stadium, home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Florida.
SoFi Stadium, home of the Los Angeles Rams and the Los Angeles Chargers in California, is under review. Mission Ready Venue designations are for five-year increments with a yearly check-in to ensure continued readiness of the venue. Re-designation will be determined at each increment. These designations do not supersede any agreements with state, local, or private-sector entities.
Adding More Value to Community Assets
NFL stadiums serve their local communities in many vital ways, including as unofficial emergency response hubs. Stadiums around the country were harnessed during the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but they need to be more prepared to handle the needs of disaster survivors. For example, most stadiums have shower facilities for just two sports teams, which are not compliant with the Americans With Disabilities Act. Companies are designing mobile shower units to meet these needs, and most states have some capacity through their National Guard units. Through this new initiative, which now has the support of the NFL, the NFL and FEMA are addressing the many logistical considerations for converting stadiums into mass care shelters before the next disaster.
FEMA consults with emergency managers in these venues before considering the facility for this opportunity. The FEMA Disaster Fund provides the financial resources, so Mission Ready Packages do not impose on local emergency management but can benefit their operations. These large community assets will become increasingly more valuable in the following regards:
- Safety and Security: Centrally located stadiums are close to major roadways, transportation hubs, and critical services like hospitals. They save valuable time and resources for lifesaving response and enhancing coordination between public and private sectors, especially during response and recovery.
- Accessibility: Stadiums already comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act and can support persons with disabilities and others with access or functional needs. Meeting these needs is sometimes challenging for local entities following a disaster. Additionally, 73% of NFL venues are accessible by mass transportation. Thus, stadiums provide ready avenues for underserved populations to access critical services.
- Community Resilience: Stadiums and arenas are focal points of communities, strengthening social networks as a place to share team pride with other community members. These Mission Ready Venues can boost morale amid disaster by providing a more robust and resilient environment, enhancing social networks among survivors, and offering ample opportunities to establish connections with other disaster survivors.
- Unity of Effort: Since stadiums are fixed locations, resources and services can support survivors and responders by being deployed quickly. This assists with stabilizing the incident and the community’s physical and economic recovery.
The period between the end of hurricane season and the onslaught of spring flooding, tornadoes, and potentially more hurricanes is a great time to continue to ramp up building preparedness. Although Mission Ready Packages will likely be a work in progress for the next several major disasters, this new partnership between the NFL and FEMA is a step in the right direction toward greater community resilience.
Kay C. Goss
Kay Goss has been the president of World Disaster Management since 2012. She is the former senior assistant to two state governors, coordinating fire service, emergency management, emergency medical services, public safety, and law enforcement for 12 years. She then served as the associate Federal Emergency Management Agency director for National Preparedness, Training, Higher Education, Exercises, and International Partnerships (presidential appointee, U.S. Senate confirmed unanimously). She was a private-sector government contractor for 12 years at the Texas firm Electronic Data Systems as a senior emergency manager and homeland security advisor and SRA International’s director of emergency management services. She is a senior fellow at the National Academy for Public Administration and serves as a nonprofit leader on the board of advisors for DRONERESPONDERS International and for the Institute for Diversity and Inclusion in Emergency Management. She has also been a graduate professor of emergency management at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas for 16 years, Istanbul Technical University for 12 years, the MPA Programs Metropolitan College of New York for five years, and George Mason University. She has been a certified emergency manager for 27 years; Arkansas Tech University Emergency Management and Homeland Security Program Advisory Council Member for 28 years; Metropolitan College of New York Emergency Management and Homeland Security Advisory Council for 15 years; and founder of the FEMA Higher Education Program, established in 1994.
