Aug. 2 (Bloomberg) -- The chaos following Hurricane Katrina in 2005, when emergency ice and food arrived too late and corpses weren't collected from New Orleans streets, won't be repeated in the next disaster, said Admiral Thad Allen, the U.S. Coast Guard commandant credited with salvaging the inept federal response to the storm.

``There is nothing right now that inhibits an effective response,'' Allen said in an interview, just days after Dolly, the first gulf hurricane of 2008, hit the Texas coast.

In Katrina's wake, the Federal Emergency Management Agency streamlined its antiquated system for delivering provisions, and the Bush administration reorganized the military so it can restore order more effectively, said Allen, 59, who graduated from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in 1971.

Almost three years after Katrina destroyed 300,000 homes and forced the evacuation of 1.5 million people, including the city of New Orleans, the region is still struggling to rebuild.

As the government prepares for future emergencies, one of the biggest differences is that officials have seen how devastating the worst disasters can be, Allen said. Government at all levels failed to comprehend Katrina's scope, slowing the response, he said.

``It was so far off the scale, it was hard to understand,'' Allen said. ``If you can't quantify it, it's hard to say, `This is what I need to do about it.'''

Disaster Overhaul

The federal disaster processes have been overhauled to improve their effectiveness, Allen said. The 5th Army, based at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, was reorganized into the U.S. Army North and given responsibilities for homeland defense and disaster response. Trained troops can now deploy quickly if tragedies overwhelm state and local resources, he said.

FEMA now can track, by computer, trucks carrying food, ice and tarps. The agency has stowed supplies near the coasts and other potential disaster areas.

Federal agencies have standing agreements outlining their responsibilities in joint recovery efforts. Previously, those details weren't worked out until after a storm.

While federal coordination has improved, ``more still needs to be done,'' said Craig Fugate, director of Florida's Division of Emergency Management. After unhealthy levels of potentially cancer-causing formaldehyde were found in trailers for Katrina evacuees, FEMA earlier this month released a proposal that will restrict future housing efforts without providing consistent federal standards for formaldehyde, Fugate said.

``The policies and procedures haven't really improved much,'' he said.

Political Meddling

James Carafano, a homeland security analyst at the Washington-based Heritage Foundation, said the government has had to contend with unhelpful ``meddling'' from Congress. Federal grants to cities and states have been distributed according to lawmakers' political priorities rather than targeted at communities with the highest disaster risks, he said.

``In some respects, we're worse off,'' Carafano said.

On Sept. 5, 2005, a week after Katrina hit, Allen, who was then the Coast Guard chief of staff, was ordered to New Orleans to help coordinate the faltering federal response. On Sept. 9, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff put Allen in charge of the federal recovery operation in place of FEMA Director Michael Brown.

``I became Katrina Inc.,'' said Allen, who was promoted to the Coast Guard's top post in May 2006.

A 2006 White House report on Katrina said Allen ``ultimately proved critical for energizing'' the federal effort. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Joe Lieberman, a Connecticut independent, said Allen provided ``extraordinary leadership'' in the Katrina recovery.

Unprecedented Challenges

Allen said Brown had to deal with unprecedented circumstances: Katrina had crippled state and local networks of emergency workers and police essential to recovery efforts.

``Somehow you have to get past that and say, `How is it we are going to do this?''' Allen said.

Still, there are limits to what government can do. In the first 72 to 96 hours after a disaster, rescuers might not be able to reach survivors, who need to prepare to help themselves.

``People are lining up within 24 hours after an event to get food, water and ice,'' Allen said. ``People have stopped realizing they're responsible for their own safety.''

To contact the reporter on this story: Jeff Bliss in Washington jbliss@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: August 2, 2008 00:01 EDT