'Israel's homefront ill-prepared for national emergency'

Israel's homefront is ill-prepared for a major national emergency, and local authorities' individual emergency apparatuses are gravely lacking, a report by State Comptroller Yosef Shapira said Wednesday.

The report noted that despite many changes and updates in the Israeli homefront's emergency readiness polices since the 2006 Second Lebanon War, the relevant government and municipal bodies tasked with ensuring homefront readiness fall short of meeting their objectives.

The current comptroller audit, ordered following the 2013 blizzard fiasco, focused on the Defense, Public Security, Interior and Homefront Defense ministries, as well as on the National Security Council, IDF and the Israel Police.

Shapira concluded that one of the main issues plaguing homefront emergency readiness was the absence of comprehensive legislation on the matter.

"This is a grave deficiency, which for years has been hindering the operations of the various bodies overseeing homefront readiness, their collaboration and coordination," Shapira wrote in the report, adding that the "organizational outline and normative infrastructure" of homefront emergency policies are significantly lacking.

The report noted that in June 2014 the government reinstated the Defense Ministry's control over the National Emergency Authority, as well as its ministerial jurisdiction over matters concerning national emergency situations -- effectively rendering the Homefront Defense Ministry defunct -- but the change failed to address the need for legislative arrangements.

Moreover, as of early 2015, Defense Ministry and former Homefront Defense Ministry officials have yet to present the government with an outline for the full transfer of authorities, he said.

The report also found both policy and infrastructure deficiencies in local authorities' ability to handle major events caused by extreme weather or fire.

The existing legislative infrastructure fails to name a specific enforcement agency, whose job it is to ensure municipalities comply with uniform emergency policies, and therefore each local authority is left to its own devices, and as a result, some municipalities are ill-equipped to handle emergency situations in their jurisdiction, the report said.

Shapira's report also found significant deficiencies in Israel's transportation system's emergency readiness, saying the coordination between the various bodies controlling it, and between them and the Israel Police, is grossly lacking, making it difficult for them to determine both the nature of an event and the best way to handle it.

Israel Electric Corporation, which oversees the country's emergency power reserves, was found to be plagued by outdated policies, and its emergency readiness was criticized as "grossly deficient."

So far, IEC has failed to apply the necessary emergency readiness policies that would enable its call center to assist the public in case of a national emergency, the report concluded.

"The report found significant deficiencies. I believe the inherent complexity of regulating the homefront operations during national emergencies warrants enacting principal legislation. We need a homefront defense law," the state comptroller said Tuesday, during an Israeli Bar Association conference.

In a statement issued Wednesday, the Federation of Local Authorities in Israel said it has "repeatedly warned the government that a special body must be designated to integrate and improve civilian emergency readiness, outline a multi-year plan for all local authorities, coordinate all relevant bodies, and supervise the plan's implementation on the ground. This issue must receive substantial funding from the defense budget, especially for the weaker authorities, so to reduce the gaps in emergency readiness between authorities."

The Transportation Ministry said it "lends operational continuity and emergency readiness special importance. The ministry has recently formed an emergency department to coordinate between the various bodies, and set clear priorities in emergency situations. The lessons learned from recent emergency events, including extreme weather, have been implemented."

The Israel Electric Corporation asserted that "after every unusual event IEC conducts an orderly review process. We stress that IEC has addressed every issue mentioned in the state comptroller's report."

The National Infrastructure, Energy and Water Resources Ministry said, "The state comptroller has been briefed on our professional position and activities regarding all issues.

"The National Infrastructure, Energy and Water Resources Ministry will continue to work tirelessly to promote the issue [of emergency readiness] to benefit the public. The ministry will study the state comptroller's findings in depth, and strive to implement the necessary actions."

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